Hey there gang.
Did something unusual for my birthday the other day. Caught THE DARK KNIGHT again. I'm not one for repeat showings in the theater. But it did sort of expose the fact that there are two types of moviegoers. I sat with the first bunch on Thursday night/ Friday morning. Those people are the fans of either the movie, an actor, or the character. These folks went nuts the first time you see the Joker in action, laughed at the right moments and got into the movie and left it clapping and happy.
The group I was it with on Monday night was an entirely different group. Most of them sat there silent and while there were some chuckles and gasps at certain things, they were as about as much fun as a dead fish.
I use the truck flipping stunt as an example. No real spoilers here, we've all seen the ads. Thursday night's crowd? Clapping and whooping it up. I can only imagine how this must have looked in the IMAX format. Monday? No real reaction, maybe a "wow" or two heard, but that was my brother-in-law, who we treated to the movie.
Oh and the fact that a new SPIRIT trailer (with footage!) appeared Monday was lost on most of the crowd. But I remember the reaction by quite a few people (excited to see it and how Dr. Manhattan looked)when the WATCHMEN trailer started on Thursday.
So, if there is a point to this, I guess it's this: if you really want to see the movie, to enjoy it with people who are going to enjoy it (not to say that they went and had nothing better to do), then go as early as possible. The fans who do tend to make it a more enjoyable experience.
Not that there is anything wrong with waiting. I understand that some of us have difficulties with crowds and life in general. Just think that at least once you should do this. It could be great fun.
Later.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Friday, July 18, 2008
The Dark (and long) Knight
Hey there all.
I promise that I won't spoil a thing for anyone. Nothing that the ads may or may not have done.
All I'll say is a one word answer to the question "is it worth the hype?"
Well, what do you think?
YES!! OMG YES!!!
I am sure that there will be naysayers out there, that IRON MAN or HULK was better, and I will admit that IRON MAN was VERY GOOD.
But this? This was a tour de force for just about everyone who appeared on screen.
That's all I'm saying for now. Go and judge for yourself.
I promise that I won't spoil a thing for anyone. Nothing that the ads may or may not have done.
All I'll say is a one word answer to the question "is it worth the hype?"
Well, what do you think?
YES!! OMG YES!!!
I am sure that there will be naysayers out there, that IRON MAN or HULK was better, and I will admit that IRON MAN was VERY GOOD.
But this? This was a tour de force for just about everyone who appeared on screen.
That's all I'm saying for now. Go and judge for yourself.
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam #1- A review. Writing, art and "heart" by Mike Kunkel. Lettering by Steve Wands
First off, sorry that I don't have a picture to put up. No scanner and DC's website was not cooperating.
When I first saw the solict for this in Previews, I had to do a double take. There was Mike Kunkel doing a DC book? And a "kids" title at that? Holy crap! To explain my reaction, let me give you a quick flashback. Several years ago I was wondering thru my comic store and happened upon an indy book called "Herobear and the Kid". The cover reached me for some reason and as I opened it, I was instantly captivated. The art, the style of writing, the characters were a perfect marriage. I became a Mike Kunkel fan on the spot. Since that book many years ago, I have been scanning the comic horizon for more of Mr. Kunkel, but to no avail. The only time recently I had seen him was in the Batman/Superman tribute book to Sam Loeb.
When you pick up this book, you are transported back to a few years ago. Not so much the story right off, but the fact that this book is priced and looks exactly like comics did before the speculator boom. Even though this book is not in current DC continuity, they saddled him with with the story done by Jeff Smith (Bone) a few years ago. Billy is Captain Marvel, his little sister is Mary Marvel. To be honest the first couple of pages are sort of lost to me. It's because the dialogue is written in The Monster Society Code. I am not sure if this is something that Smith came up or if this as old as the original Captain way back when. At least they give you the code up front and let you decipher it. Smith's book has the titles done like this and you had to wait until the final issue to get the code. Don't fault him for that, just sayin'.
After a brief recap of what's happened lately, the story jumps to Cap and Mary flying to save a train with no brakes. The interaction here is what you would expect from a brother and sister. We learn that while they both have the same key word to change, their powers are slightly different. Billy uses Cap to pose as an adult to get them an apartment and to meet the principal of the school they are to attend. As he goes to change, he is summoned to the Rock of Eternity by Solomon. Also introduced is the villain of the book, Theo Adam (Black Adam). Turns out at the end of the Jeff Smith mini, as Cap was tossing the bad guys into a vortex (don't ask), Theo escaped from another dimension, but he returns as a kid. He was placed there by Solomon for some reason. Solomon tells Cap of this threat and that the 7 evils are opening their eyes, which is not a good sign. Theo sees Cap and recognizes him, sort of. He knows there is a word that will give him power, but he can't remember it. He also sees the change from Cap into Billy and knows that he can do that as well, as soon as he remembers the word.
This book has all the things that make Mike Kunkel a terrific creator, in my book. First off, the interaction between the characters is spot on. Cap has Superman powers, yet retains Billy's innocence. Theo acts like a snooty prince talking to kids his own age. Billy and Mary act like you would expect siblings to act. The art is exceptional. I have always thought of Kunkel's work as "storyboard-ish", that is clean and static, but conveys a sense of motion and emotion. His ability to convey the emotion of a character simply by observing their face. The humor both broad and subtle is refreshing.
Now, this is not the perfect book. Several things are somewhat troubling me. First off, since this a "Johnny DC" book, why burden him with current events? Why not let him take off and retell things using his own spin? Also, using the Monster Society code at the beginning and end of the book for dialogue may tax or lose younger readers who don't want to work that hard to decipher it.
Still, this is a very, very good book. It's something that old Captain Marvel fans would enjoy as well as the younger set who the book is aimed at. I hope that DC gives Mike a good chance to create some stories that will entice and entrance you as he did me.
Grade: A minus (sorry, they lose a point for the code)
First off, sorry that I don't have a picture to put up. No scanner and DC's website was not cooperating.
When I first saw the solict for this in Previews, I had to do a double take. There was Mike Kunkel doing a DC book? And a "kids" title at that? Holy crap! To explain my reaction, let me give you a quick flashback. Several years ago I was wondering thru my comic store and happened upon an indy book called "Herobear and the Kid". The cover reached me for some reason and as I opened it, I was instantly captivated. The art, the style of writing, the characters were a perfect marriage. I became a Mike Kunkel fan on the spot. Since that book many years ago, I have been scanning the comic horizon for more of Mr. Kunkel, but to no avail. The only time recently I had seen him was in the Batman/Superman tribute book to Sam Loeb.
When you pick up this book, you are transported back to a few years ago. Not so much the story right off, but the fact that this book is priced and looks exactly like comics did before the speculator boom. Even though this book is not in current DC continuity, they saddled him with with the story done by Jeff Smith (Bone) a few years ago. Billy is Captain Marvel, his little sister is Mary Marvel. To be honest the first couple of pages are sort of lost to me. It's because the dialogue is written in The Monster Society Code. I am not sure if this is something that Smith came up or if this as old as the original Captain way back when. At least they give you the code up front and let you decipher it. Smith's book has the titles done like this and you had to wait until the final issue to get the code. Don't fault him for that, just sayin'.
After a brief recap of what's happened lately, the story jumps to Cap and Mary flying to save a train with no brakes. The interaction here is what you would expect from a brother and sister. We learn that while they both have the same key word to change, their powers are slightly different. Billy uses Cap to pose as an adult to get them an apartment and to meet the principal of the school they are to attend. As he goes to change, he is summoned to the Rock of Eternity by Solomon. Also introduced is the villain of the book, Theo Adam (Black Adam). Turns out at the end of the Jeff Smith mini, as Cap was tossing the bad guys into a vortex (don't ask), Theo escaped from another dimension, but he returns as a kid. He was placed there by Solomon for some reason. Solomon tells Cap of this threat and that the 7 evils are opening their eyes, which is not a good sign. Theo sees Cap and recognizes him, sort of. He knows there is a word that will give him power, but he can't remember it. He also sees the change from Cap into Billy and knows that he can do that as well, as soon as he remembers the word.
This book has all the things that make Mike Kunkel a terrific creator, in my book. First off, the interaction between the characters is spot on. Cap has Superman powers, yet retains Billy's innocence. Theo acts like a snooty prince talking to kids his own age. Billy and Mary act like you would expect siblings to act. The art is exceptional. I have always thought of Kunkel's work as "storyboard-ish", that is clean and static, but conveys a sense of motion and emotion. His ability to convey the emotion of a character simply by observing their face. The humor both broad and subtle is refreshing.
Now, this is not the perfect book. Several things are somewhat troubling me. First off, since this a "Johnny DC" book, why burden him with current events? Why not let him take off and retell things using his own spin? Also, using the Monster Society code at the beginning and end of the book for dialogue may tax or lose younger readers who don't want to work that hard to decipher it.
Still, this is a very, very good book. It's something that old Captain Marvel fans would enjoy as well as the younger set who the book is aimed at. I hope that DC gives Mike a good chance to create some stories that will entice and entrance you as he did me.
Grade: A minus (sorry, they lose a point for the code)
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