Weekend Contest: Win a Copy of the Sold Out 'Duncan the Wonder Dog'

Comics Alliance is running a contest to win what the title of this post is talking about so I thought I'd use my neglected blog to make an entry. Multitasking, bitches!

As an aside, this makes me feel like Ralphie writing his theme in desperate hopes to get that air rifle. Hope Laura Hudson doesn't tell me I'll shoot my eye out.

Hard to figure out which non-speaking animal is my favorite since LOCKJAW AND THE PET AVENGERS came out, but I'm going to go with: Robin Robin, Robin's pet Robin in TINY TITANS.

I imagine that given the ability of speech, his first words would be "AW YEAH, PET CLUB!" Maybe followed up with, "Wait, which Robin is mine?"

REMEMBER WHEN...

...Captain America went emo and no one called him out on it?

To be fair to the people of the late 80's, the term "emo" hadn't been invented yet, but that is completely what happened to Steve Rogers. Back in '87, Rogers became distrustful of the government after a high ranking senator turned out to be an operative of the Secret Empire. When the Commission on Superhero Activities demanded Rogers come back to work as a government agent, he let go of the government owned Captain America costume and went into action as the black-clad The Captain.

This being the 80's you'd think they were trying to make Cap dark and gritty, but that was reserved for the new Captain America John Walker. Walker started off levelheaded, then went completely off the rails, killing loads of people before Rogers smacked him down. No, Rogers' black costume was to show his disillusionment with the government he held so high.

This is Sad Cap. Still kicked ass, though. He is the Super-Soldier.

JON HEX REVIEWS...The War for Infinity

The War for Infinity

Artist: Adam WarRock, featuring Tribe One

Producer: Ruckus Roboticus

Geek fandom/culture has seen an explosion in popularity in the past ten years and with it, a trend of blending geekdom with other influences. While geek hip hop is not entirely new, Adam WarRock’s The War for Infinity may be the first time it was exceptionally brilliant.

Adam WarRock is the alter ego of Eugene Ahn, who left a law career to devote himself full time to hip hop. After listening to Infinity, you will agree it was for the best. The lead track, I Am Him, tells the backstory of the character Adam WarRock and certifies WarRock’s geek credentials to anyone who gets the reference. It also serves as prologue because the album (with the exception of a few tracks) is a story in rhyme, each serving up a chapter in the battle between WarRock and his archenemy Demonos (played by Tribe One).

WarRock has an impressive way with words. His voice stays clear, keeping the story from taking backstage to the stunning beats laid down by Ruckus Roboticus. Tracks like Heroes Requiem show off his storytelling ability, which is a rarity in mainstream hip hop. Requiem not only name-drops dozens of superheroes and iconic character, but presents them in a character-true cosmic battle sequence. Crooked Deal shows a Faustian deal with allusions to shady record company practices.

The strongest songs are when WarRock and Tribe One play off each other, a meta battle of words between characters and artists. Battle (Introductions) is a cosmic rap battle that only serves to fuel Demonos’ rage and give a glimpse of the awesomeness of Battle (Finale), the ultimate showdown between the two cosmic adversaries. It feels like a sonic mega event and you will listen to it again and again.

Some may be put off by the idea of a story concept album, but shouldn’t be. This is hip hop as it when meant to be: a demonstration of a love, whether it’s of a people, a culture, the streets or the way stories are presented. For an even deeper experience, drop the cash for the Deluxe version, which contains exclusive remixes of songs from WarRock’s Tracklog, his musical sketchbook offered free on his website AdamWarRock.com. Listen to the track log, buy the album.

Rating: A+ An engaging story backed by superior beats.

Purchase The War for Infinity CD at http://adamwarrock.bigcartel.com/product/the-war-for-infinity-cd

Purchase The War for Infinity CD/Digital Deluxe Download at http://adamwarrock.bandcamp.com/album/the-war-for-infinity-deluxe-edition

New York Comic Con 2010: Saturday

I only realized NYCC was coming around when I read Adam WarRock's post on his set with Kirby Krackle at the NYC Nerd Rock Festival. It wasn't that long after SPX, so there wasn't a lot of time to plan a trip to one of (if not) the most popular destinations in the US, but I tried to rally the troops. Troops had other he plans, then the weekend & Saturday passes for the con sold out. Always next year, right?

Enter James Rambo, a friend of mine who works at Victory Comics in VA. Victory set up a booth at NYCC and had an extra professional pass. As soon as Rambo offered, my mind was set and I decided I was going, sans plan. I hopped an early morning (cheaper) train and was in NYC an hour before the con started. It reminded of SDCC circa '06, and had a lot of cool booths set up and interesting merch being sold, like the new Steve Rogers tee and disco lightsabers. I spent a few hours just wandering around and talking with Rambo and Julian Lytle, who had a table in Artists Alley.

I was able to buy a copy of The War For Infinity from Euge (Adam WarRock) after running into him between show floors. He is a cool guy and still talked to me after making the worst pun ever using his name. He saw Chris Claremont and HE brought up how bittersweet it was to see the man, forever cementing my high opinion of Euge. Then I ran into Jen Vaughn who was at the con just to visit, mostly. I met her at SPX when she was selling Adam WarRock tees she designed. For those who don't know her, I'm sorry about that, because she's awesome. We met up with David Wolkin of Comics Alliance and wandered around the con saying hello to Jen's friends before the Comics Alliance panel started. She gave a nice bio before getting to each person, so I didn't have to ask what they did or stand there like a prop.

As we passed the signing row looking for Marvel artists, David mentioned how much he didn't like the whole celebrity culture. Jen and I kind of threw it back in his face ten minutes later by asking Scott Adsit to pose with us when we spotted him by the entrance. I was like, "Scott Adsit!" He turned but was a few feet away and suddenly Jen was next to him like a ninja. She handed him copies of her mini-comic to make it less likely for him to blow us off. Told you she's awesome. Anyway, the three of us got to the panel, where Euge and Kevin Church were already seated. It went something like this: http://www.comicsalliance.com/2010/10/15/comicsalliance-panel-video-nycc-2010/ I met Chris Sims face-to-face and got to crack a joke in a public forum. WIN. The con winded down after that. I picked up OCTOPUS PIE: THERE ARE NO STARS IN BROOKLYN from Meredith Gran at the Dumbrella booth. She remembered my face from SPX and I was glad someone remembered my face without confusing me for someone else.

After a bad first impression with the NY subway system, I made it to the Nerd Rock Festival and met up with Euge. We then went over to meet up where Chris Sims, Kevin Church, Robin Kimball, Benjamin Birdie, and Jen had posted up for the show. Robin did an interesting thing with her ears and glowsticks that I got a pic of. Sticks with you. It was quite a fun time and Kirby Krackle rocked way more than I was expecting (I was there for Euge). With Euge's set over, we broke apart and I decided to stay for the rest of the show. Not the best decision. The rest kind of sucked. But altogether, it proved to be one hell of a Saturday and the best decision I've made since deciding to stop watching HEROES.

I WISH...

...that I worked for Marvel and they still owned the license to G.I. Joe, because I would make this happen:

Real American Hero action!

I Lesbians The Leaked THOR Trailer!

I have no idea if the video is still up but here the link be: http://thetvrealist.com/gossip/Thor-Comic-Con-Trailer-3145978.html

What you can expect:

- Muscles: Chris Helmsworth hit the gym. Hard. I think it may have fell over.

- Agent Coulson: It seems as though Clark Gregg will be getting screentime equivalent to both IRON MAN movies combined.

- Kat Dennings: I don't know who she plays and do not care. MORE KAT DENNINGS!

- The Warriors Three: Badass!

-Helmets: Worry not, fanboys. Not only is Thor sporting his trademark winged accessory, but brother Loki brings the horns.

- Hammer Swinging: Because it's not a party if it ain't got that swing.

-Lady Sif: Hot, but still...KAT DENNINGS!

DC Keeps My Money...For Now

For the past few months, I have been whittling down my monthly pull list. Not due to budget constraints, but because a lot of books were starting to suck. The majority of those books were from DC Comics.

After War of the Supermen, I was looking forward to having Superman back on Earth, being Super and what not, but as anyone who read Superman #700 can attest, that is not the case. So, I was wondering if I'd be dropping the other books in the Superman family. I dumped Adventure when it became nouveau-Golden Age Legion of Super-Heroes; I was getting it because I thought Superboy Connor would be the series star. Action Comics was staying on because Paul Cornell's Wisdom and Captain Britain and MI:13 were brilliant, and making the book about Lex Luthor is inspired. But what about Supergirl?

I have mixed feelings about Sterling Gates run. While he was building a solid foundation for the character, every so often Gates would have Supergirl do something so incomprehensibly stupid, I wanted to smack him AND her. Add that to the fact that I wouldn't be reading about Superman at all for at least a year, I couldn't think of a reason to really stay with this title. Then this happened:

You got me, Gates. You got me.

I Lesbians SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD

Last night, I had the privilege of seeing one of the (if not THE) most awesome combinations of visual and audio stimulation ever put to digital recording. SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD is just a beautiful adaptation of Bryan Lee O'Malley's graphic novels, eschewing the deep characterization that the books have the time for, to bring the frenetic action and indie rock music to life. It's like seeing the pages come alive, and since the books rock ultimate, that's just downright delightful.

The soundtrack with jumps from 80's videogame music to Beck-infused rock is a major highlight to this movie. Videogames and videogame references are splattered across the graphic novels and from the opening you realize Edgar Wright was not going to waste a chance to exploit the movie medium for original references. Also, the music of the bands (Sex Bob-Omb, The Clash at Demonhead, Crash and the Boys) are stunningly good. You will be picking up the soundtrack.

And the fights! O'Malley can draw a good fight, but the ones presented in this movie are ridiculously awesome. Not just the choreography, either. The camera angles give the scenes that extra punch with overhead and moving shots. The Street Fighter influence on the action is particularly awesome, having VS. appear when a fight breaks out and multiple instances of differing game effects with each fight.

The humor of books is also on display. It's freaking hilarious. I have to give it up to the villain turns of Jason Schwartzman, Brandon Routh and particularly Chris Evans, who is just stealing the movie away during his scene. The fact is, though, everyone is pulling their weight, especially Edgar Wright with his cut scenes and sight gags. Michael Cera pulls off the various, differing aspects of Scott Pilgrim well. His general cockiness, paranoid vulnerability, frequent cluelessness, and eventual determination are all there. Plus, it's Michael Cera and that pretty much would have gotten me into the seat, anyway.

Kieran Culkin : Wallace Wells :: Robert Downey Jr. : Tony Stark

Overall, I think what I liked most about the movie is that, even with how close it was to the source material, the divergent path it took was still in keeping with the story. And it was still brilliant. It's a movie you can enjoy tremendously with or without having read the books, because what you love about the story is still there, presented in a more kinetic way.

Rating: *In Miz voice* AAAWWWWWEEE-SSSOOOOOMMMMMEEE!! (Wait, do I like The Miz, now? Damn.)

Great Moments In Animated Insensitivity: THE 13 GHOSTS OF SCOOBY-DOO

Dateline: 1984

Hanna-Barbera has been milking the Scooby-Doo franchise for a decade and it's time to refresh the property. Having found success with guest stars and, somehow, Scrappy-Doo (really?), HB decides to blend these elements into a new Scooby-Doo series that revolves around a modified Scooby Gang tracking down 13 ghosts released from a Demon Chest Shaggy and Scoob probably thought contained "a crazy cupcake stash."

Rounding out this new crew are Daphne with a fresh bob and a fad-starting short sleeve-over-long sleeve combo, the aforementioned Scrappy and the Master of Scare-amonies, Vincent Price. Now Price pretty much worked like six minutes an episode, letting the youngsters round up the ghosts while I'm guessing he drank vodka tonics and "entertained" whores. But the key ingredient of this series is this little fellow:

When I mentioned the series to my friends on Wednesday, I mistakenly thought the kid's name was Riff Raff, and that he was an Arab orphan with a terribly unfortunate name. The truth is way better. And by "better," I mean kind of racist. See, the kid's name was actually Flim Flam and he was a Mexican con artist. Let that roll around your thoughts for a second.

Just to be clear. In 1984, Hanna-Barbera decided the best way to introduce diversity into Scooby-Doo's all white/canine cast is to give them a Mexican juvenile delinquent with a talent for lying.

Jon Hex Gets It Together...

...To bring you his review of the last volume of Bryan Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim:

This is JON HEX REVIEWS...

From the start, O'Malley has been throwing readers a curve. When you start reading Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life, you're not really prepared for the craziness and the awesomeness that the story has in store for you. Subspace highways, evil ex-boyfriends (sorry, evil exes), long sword proficiencies, 2 second punk rock masterpieces and vegan psychics come blasting towards you, hooking you into what is the underlining story of how a slacker gets a handle on growing up and falling in love.

Volume Six begins with Scott stuck in limbo, playing PSP Go on his couch waiting for any definitive word on the whereabouts of his love, Ramona V. Flowers. For four months, Scott has been neglecting his job, friends and anything from his life pining for a girl who may not come back, avoiding the final confrontation with Ramona's last evil ex, Gideon. From the earlier volumes, you know Scott can get sidetracked, but without a clear mission, Scott is completely rudderless, moving like a zombie through his life without any sense of what he's doing or what he's going to do.

To me, one of the best parts of this book is Scott's meanderings throughout the beginning of this volume. We get a sense of the what the "lost year" was like, after he broke up with Envy Adams and before he met Knives Chau. Like any finale, we get answers to questions we had from previous volumes and O'Malley delivers here, showing why Scott sees himself a little differently than everyone around him sees him and for his spotty memory.

But life won't wait for Scott to get ready for it. Gideon is opening his new club in Scott's town. Scott's friends are moving on without Scott's participation. Knives Chau is no longer 17 Years Old. Scott tries to get back in the game and finds the road to maturity is not without pain, but it will get him to what he's been looking for.

The greatest thing about this series is how well formed O'Malley's characters are. They're not just props in the story of Scott Pilgrim, they grow and change with the protagonist. You get a sense of how life is changing for Scott by the changes of his friends and it just heightens the story. The emotional center of this series is what makes people into such avid fans.

Rating: A+ This is a finale that does not disappoint and pays off big. Read the whole series. Now.

An Epic Trailer

If you haven't, check out the new SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD trailer. It will drop your jaw and shut your face at the SAME TIME. I've seen it happen. Bonus: this trailer features lines from the very cute Aubrey Plaza and nice shots of the actors playing Knives Chau and Stephen Stills. As I write, I'm realizing anyone who reads my blog must have seen this trailer like three times already. Well... Go.

Work! Sweet, unpaid work!

I now write for the good people at PopCultureShock and invite you all to check out the site. I review books like I would occasionally do here, but with more focus on reviewing instead of just saying, "That blows!" Go.

How I Would Make...

...the LUKE CAGE & IRON FIST movie. Well, not the whole thing, just the beginning.

It would start with a voiceover detailing the government trying to recreate the Super Soldier experiment(complete with a scene from CAPTAIN AMERICA:FIRST AVENGER) and how prisoners were used as guinea pigs. Wrongly convicted Carl Lucas is used as the first experiment which succeeds in creating a super soldier with superstrength and steel hard skin but the machine explodes. Lucas takes the opportunity to escape and start a new life as Luke Cage, Hero for Hire. He sets up shop in his native Harlem, taking up the plight of it's underprivileged citizens, while trying to find the criminal who set him up for manslaughter. Caption would read Brian J. White as Luke Cage.

Next scene begins with a Chinese inspired kingdom shown hidden in snowy mountains, outside a blizzard rages, but inside, it's early spring. Voiceover explains how Wendall Rand once visited the hidden city of K'un L'un, and with his business partner, wife and son make the perilous journey back to the magical land of his youth. But the partner, Harold Meachum, causes the death of his father and wolves take his mother, 6 year old Daniel Rand is left in the care of the Thunderer, the lead trainer of K'un L'un's warriors, who witnessed the death of Daniel's mother
Trained in the martial arts of K'un L'un, Daniel Rand earns the opportunity to fight Shou-Lao the dragon to become the Iron Fist, immortal weapon of the K'un L'un. Battle with Stan Winston dragon ensues, Daniel slaps against the dragon to gain the tattoo, kills Shou-Lao and drives his hands into brazier of mystical-ness to gain the power of the Iron Fist.
Daniel returns to take control of his company from the corrupt Meachum and to fight injustice with his martial art skills and chi powers. Caption would read Cam Gigandet as Iron Fist.

Cue 70's funk, maybe remixed by Danger Mouse. Scenes would show Luke beating street toughs, Danny fighting Tyler Mane. how cases Luke and Danny were working on separately intersected and then the duo deciding to team up. Fighting, explosions and laughter.

Next, captions show Guest Starring Nightwing Restorations Ltd. Freema Agyeman as Misty Knight & Olivia Wilde as Colleen Wing. Scenes of LC & IF teaming up with MK & CW, Tony Stark attaching Misty's robotic arm(brandy in hand), Misty and Danny dating and ends with an appearance by Evangeline Lilly as private detective Jessica Jones and because I like the character, Shia LaBeouf as Rick Jones. Why Rick Jones? Screw you, that's why!

Anyway, where the movie goes from there is anyone's guess. I just do beginnings. Glad to be back to the making blogposts game. Maybe I'll keep it up. Who knows?