Madman and the Atomics Apparel: “What’s the Skinny?”

Last week Mike Allred announced that strangecandyink.com is crafting and selling Madman shirts featuring Frank Einstein’s iconic exclamation bolt symbol, and that more are on the way in the form of It-Girl, Mr. Gum and the Atomics shirts.  I make it a point to try and not overdue it with super-hero apparel, but this is one of those happy exceptions.  I actually own an “exclamation bolt” shirt already, but apparently I’m not done.

Check out the link for other styles.

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Valkyrie Profile: The Accussed One (DS)

"Destiny by sinner sought, Tragedy by power wrought."

While I’m always excited to hear any Valkyrie Profile-related news, I’m that much more fired up after finding out that the game will be a Stragety RPG — as game-play trailers confirm.  Check that out, and the recent VP trailer, in the video section on the right side-bar.

Also, feel free to check out the Official JP Valkyrie Profile site, that’s complete with artwork, and impressive soundtrack samples.  The Japanese will be playing the game this October, and I’m hoping that we’ll see the stateside release in the first or second quarter of 2009.

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Barks/Rosa Collection Vol. 3

This week sees the release of the third volume in the Barks/Rosa Collection. Chances are you already own “The Golden Helmet” if you’ve been collecting Duck stories for any length of time, but this collection is well worth owning not only for the classic Barks tale, but also for the Don Rosa follow-up that’s complete with a new spit shine (higher production values).  Additionally, according to The Scoop, there’s a hefty amount of supplemental material that rounds out the value collection.

Read on for more info:

When one thinks of “Disney comics” and “villains,” the mind springs to tales of Mickey Mouse and Uncle Scrooge. Time after time, the famous rodent and tycoon are seen battling dangerous, often maniacally obsessive bad guys like Pegleg Pete, the Beagle Boys, the Phantom Blot, Tachyon Farflung, and Magica De Spell. Somehow Scrooge’s money and Mickey’s love of adventure always get them mixed up with pretty powerful enemies.

But what about Donald Duck? Somehow, while Mickey and Scrooge tend to battle earth shaking foes, temperamental Donald more often meets his match in simple antagonists: annoying or disruptive characters like Gladstone Gander, Neighbor Jones, or Fethry Duck. We’re not as used to seeing Donald take down wild megalomaniacs.

But he’s got one! And in The Barks/Rosa Collection Vol 3, a 72 page, $8.99 trade paperback from Gemstone Publishing coming out next week, you’ll get to see Donald square off with one of Disneydom’s most fiendish foes…Azure Blue!

Donald’s and Azure’s first conflict came in 1952, with Carl Barks’ renowned “The Golden Helmet!” When museum guard Donald finds an ancient Viking map in the crevices of an old ship, he learns that it leads to a spot where an incredible gold helmet lies buried, the helmet of Olaf the Blue! It seems Blue claimed North America himself before any other European came to the continent. Should one of his descendents unearth the helmet as proof, the old time “Law of Discovery” will allow that person to take over North America for him or her self! Alas, the menacing Azure Blue plans to do exactly that, and he’s got ruthless shyster Lawyer Sharky along with him to help make his case! Journey with Donald and the boys into the frozen North, where Donald can only beat the villain to the helmet by being rugged as the Vikings of old! Of course, should Donald find it first, he might feel tempted to become King of North America himself!

Decades later Don Rosa came up with his beloved follow-up story, “The Lost Charts of Columbus,” and it’s here too, relettered and recolored with higher production values than its previous English language printing. When lucky Gladstone wins a fishing voyage north, he ends up ineptly aiding Azure Blue in recovering Olaf’s long lost helmet! To save the continent this time, Donald and his nephews must discover an artifact proving that some earlier explorer got to North America before the Vikings! The trail leads Donald and the boys to an ancient Chinese teak wheel, an Irish abbot’s sacred cross, and a massive Phoenician stone slab. Alas, Azure Blue and Sharky are in the mix once again, and in no time an incredible battle for the relics has begun! With the help of Junior Woodchuck’s know how and Native American professor Ortez, Donald and the boys might save their world for the future…but can they save their necks?

“Golden Helmet” and “Columbus” themselves are the main attractions in Barks/Rosa 3, but we’d be remiss not to mention our lineup of supplementary features! A new article by Rosa outlines the development of “Columbus,” but that’s not all. We’ve got Rosa’s original “Columbus” cover, then numerous covers by other creators for both “Columbus” and “The Golden Helmet.” We’ve got a ten page, never before seen script sequence deleted from the “Columbus” story, showing how an original Don Rosa villain almost made it into the battle along with Blue and Sharky. We’ve got unused Rosa half pages from a serialized version of “Columbus” that was never published. And finally, we’re giving you a look at “Gensyn med den gyldne helm” (“Return of the Golden Helmet”), a rare alternate duck sequel that was published in Denmark only!

We’ll make it no secret: we’d rather own Barks/Rosa Collection Vol 3 than North America any day. Once you see it, you might agree!

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Tintin and Me

A number of years ago I wondered into my local bookstore and happened upon a large collection of handsome hardcover volumes by Little, Brown Young Readers collecting Hergé’s Tintin.  I flipped through a volume on the shelf and was immediately struck by the high production values, the clear  presentation of the story on the pages, and Hergé’s crisp  lines and art style (particulalry his “ligne claire” technique as I’d hear it referenced later).  It’s likely that I saw an episode or two from the animated series in my younger days because he seemed familiar.  But whatever the case I didn’t have the funds to splurge on additional books at the time (anybody purchased a college textbook in a while?) and regretfully put the book back on the shelf, filing it under the ‘check it out later’ file in my mind.  Since, I’ve done just that and learned a lot more about our hero and I’m rarin’ to start reading.  Having reigned in the number of new comics I was picking up, I’m now down to ~ 8 titles (give or take a couple each month) and am seeking out the majority of those in TPB, so I’ve got a few pennies left over to try out new things and by golly it’s time for me to give Tintin a try!  The Adventures of Tintin Vol. 1 should arrive any day now and I really can’t wait to get started.  I always feel a little ashamed when I’m late to the party in cases like this, particularly given how beloved Hergé and the character are, but circumstances being what they are I’m just glad that I’m getting the chance to jump right in now.

And speaking of Tintin, no doubt most of you know that he’s getting the Big Screen treatment in 2010 in the form of a 3-D motion capture animated film by Steven Spielburg, Peter Jackson and Steven Moffat that’s  based on the classic series.  Back in 2007 Variety quoted Spielburg as saying:“Herge’s characters have been reborn as living beings, expressing emotion and a soul which goes far beyond anything we’ve seen to date with computer animated characters.” Sounds great, though I don’t know quite what to make of it yet given that I’ve not seen a screenshot of what they’re talking about as it relates to the film but I have to applaud the commitment.  Spielburg continued, saying “we want Tintin’s adventures to have the reality of a live-action film, and yet Peter and I felt that shooting them in a traditional live-action format would simply not honor the distinctive

look of the characters and world that Herge created.” Apparently there are at least two films being produced, one by Speilburg and one by Jackson, with a third film being seriously considered.  Looking foward to some more news soon, and hopefully excitement surrounding the film will lead to a release of The Adventures of Tintin DVD set so that I can see it in its entirety as well!

Let the adventure begin…

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Next Week: Usagi Yojimbo #114

Preview courtesy of the Usagi Yojimbo Dojo and Dark Horse Comics:

“People tend to ignore the homeless and destitute, but not Usagi–especially when he discovers the same beggar in every town to which he travels! Curious, Usagi begins a search to uncover the mendicant’s identity. Little does he know, the Neko Ninja Clan is after the beggar as well. Indeed, there is more to this figure than meets the eye, but no one would guess that the mystery leads all the way to the Shogun!”

Publication Date: September 24, 2008

Format: b&w, 24 pages

Price: $2.99

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Jake Parker Art Digest

Had the good fortune of coming home from work this evening to find that my copy of the Jake Parker Art Digest, and Flight Vol. 2 (featuring his popular ‘Robot and the Sparrow’ story) were waiting for me.  In addition to the sketches, I couldn’t resist owning the 10-page Lucy Nova, S.E. story, as well as the promise of an original sketch on the introductory page for anyone that ordered a copy.  Mr. Parker actually featured the sketch on his blog the other day and little did I know that it was the very one that I’d soon receive.  Very cool, and I wanted to publicly thank him for going the extra mile and encourage anyone interested in the digest & sketch to jump over to his site and pick up a copy while he still has some left.

Here’s what you can expect in the 48-page digest:

It’s a nice little book with a ton of great sketches, finished art, and a comic story in it. Nice print quality too. You can see a bunch of images of it here. And with every book ordered I draw a neat little sketch in the front cover…

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How ‘Bout Them Cowboys!?

I wouldn’t be a good Cowboys fan if I didn’t take the opportunity to congratulate them (…and give the Eagles a little credit) on a fantastic win and for drawing the largest crowd for a cable television program – ever on ESPN’s Monday Night Football showdown.  As the Associated Press reported:

Mix in the backdrop of a rivalry and division supremacy, a few injuries, some questionable officiating calls, several big milestones and the historic nugget of this being the final Monday night game at Texas Stadium, and it’s no wonder the Cowboys were ratings gold yet again — a whopping 12.95 million homes and 18.6 million viewers, the largest audience ever for a program on cable television. It’s the second time in three years Dallas has set that mark.

I wasn’t able to watch last night as my cable is disconnected, but I followed it as best I could online and had my Dad talk me through the last few minutes over the phone.  And thanks to his foresight and DVR recorder I was able to catch the game earlier this evening.  What a game, and that DeMarcus Ware tackle (see image) on a pivotal 3rd down was a real sight to see.  That’s determination if I ever saw it.

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Whatever Happened to the Curt Swans?

I’m in the process of moving, and while packing up my collection I came across a couple of books that I wanted to keep with me for the next couple of weeks before leaving.  The first was the Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow? prestige collection and the other was DC’s Greatest Imaginary Stories TPB, something I’ve been meaning to get to for months now.  Of course, one of the major reasons for setting these collections aside was the fantastic artwork of Curt Swan.

I didn’t grow up with Swan’s work in the way I did a Jack Kirby, or a John Buscema.  I read Superman, of course, but if it wasn’t earlier reprints featuring the work of greats like Wayne Boring, etc. then largely it was the Post-Crisis work of Byrne, Ordway, Perez and others that I was most familiar with.  It was only when I turned more of my attention to the historic aspect of the hobby some 10 years ago that I began to find out more about the fascinating folks behind the scenes, including the likes of Curt Swan.  Unfortunately, one of my first introductions to Swan came in the form of a critic that didn’t hold his work in high esteem.  The argument was basically that he was the anti-Kirby, that his work was static, uninspired and boring.  I noted the criticism at the time, but seeing as how I usually don’t put too much stock in such things until I can check out the work for myself I just filed it away as one man’s opinion (though, regrettably, it’s a sentiment that I’ve heard in one form or another on a couple of occasions).  But I have to tell you, as far as I’m concerned those critics couldn’t have been more wrong.  I can certainly agree that Swan isn’t exactly Kirby in terms of the “dynamo” effect, but there are scant few that can rival him in that regard and it’s not a standard by which I judge all other artists.  Everyone has their strengths and one of Curt Swan’s greatest is his ability to consistently tell sequential stories using perfectly rendered, crystal clear lines, that craft ideal versions of the classic characters we know and love so well.   For example, I finished the “The Fantastic Story of Superman’s Sons” (Superman #166) last night and one of the panels that impressed me most was a simple one wherein Superman’s wife, half-hidden in shadow so as to retain the mystery of which gal Superman had married, comforted her “weaker” son, Kal-El II.  The composition of the scene, and the two figures, was stunning and I could have pulled out two dozen examples of the same by the time the story had concluded.  Curt Swan can draw anything, no matter how dull, no matter how fantastic, and make it a flawless part of the the story he’s telling.  Only a select number of artists can make our heroes look as heroic, females as beautiful, or villains as creepy – and do so to anywhere near the consistent degree that Curt Swan did.  And thanks to omike015 for sharing the following information at The Superman Message Board at Alvaro’s Comicboards that I also thought y’all might enjoy as it relates to Swan:

According to records at Mike’s Amazing World of DC Comics, Curt Swan is DC’s #1 artist — putting his mark on 18,634 pages (making up 1,400 stories) over his career. To put that in perspective, his closest competition — Carmine Infantino and Gil Kane — are credited with 10,322 and 8698 pages respectively. Take a look at those numbers. Carmine Infantino and Gil Kane together barely beat the number of pages illustrated by Curt Swan over their respective DC Comics careers. Making that number even more impressive is that 85% (and likely more than that) of Swan’s work was in the Superman Family of titles.

Curt Swan passed away in 1996 and was still pencilling comics featuring Superman, and other characters, right up until his death. (Swan’s last DC work was published in, fittingly enough, SUEPRMAN: THE WEDDING ALBUM — which was actually published four months after his death). I really hope Swan understood the massive impact he had on DC and Superman and just how prolific he really was.

EDIT: For even more perspective, 18,634 pages averages out to over 31 pages a month — for 50 years! Furthermore, if I’m understanding the charts, these figures don’t include covers — of which Swan did plenty. Phenomenal!

Curt Swan really was a superman himself, in more ways than one.

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DC Heroes: Honorable Mentions

I just wrapped up my Top-Ten DC Heroes list with the Superman entry below, and for anyone just tuning in here’s a quick recap of the outcome:

10. Aquaman
9. Nightwing
8. Black Canary
7. Adam Strange (& Alanna)
6. Mister Miracle (& Barda)
5. Green Lantern
4. Hawkman (& Hawkgirl)
3. Flash (Barry Allen)
2. Batman
1. Superman

But as anyone who has attempted to make a Top-Ten knows, there are literally dozens upon dozens of other characters that you have to hold back as you whittle it down to so few, so here are a number of “Honorable Mentions,” or other favorites of mine that juuuust missed the list.  Call it a Top-20 if you will…

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

20. Blue Beetle (Ted Kord)
19. Lady Blackhawk (Zinda)
18. Robin (Tim Drake)
17. Green Lantern (Alan Scott)
16. Wildcat
15. Donna Troy
14. Barbara Gordon
13. Flash (Wally West)
12. Flash (Jay Garrick)
11. Wonder Woman

Thanks for tuning in!

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DC Top-Ten #1: Superman

1. Superman
“The Man of Steel”

“Faster than a speeding bullet.  More powerful than a locomotive. Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird. It’s a plane.
It’s…Superman!”

Created circa 1932 by a couple of very imaginative storytellers named Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, and published in 1938 in the pages of Action Comics #1 – Superman is arguably the most beloved and enduring comic character of all time, a genuine America Icon, and is certainly tops as my own favorite DC character.

My first recollection of any comic character belongs to Superman.  Superman: The Movie had hit theaters in ’78 and over the next several years, into the early 80’s, I’d enjoy it on television, likely on our brand new VCR.  I couldn’t have been any older than 4 or 5 years old and watching the movie was likely my first exposure to the concept of the super-hero.  These fantastic people that had extraordinary abilities that so many put to good use in order to aid humanity.  So, yes, as the movie promised ‘I would believe that a man could fly’ and at that young age I sat transfixed, watching something that would have a profound effect on my life.  Understand, however, that I’m not talking about comics – I’m talking about an ever growing appreciation for good natured heroism that I was seeing on display, symbolized by a man donnng a cape, and pledging to fight for “Truth, Justice and the American Way.” No, Superman didn’t teach me what goodness was, my parents had already done that, but he certainly he was reinforcing the lessons that they were striving to teach me and there on the screen I was seeing it visualized. Everything about that movie resonated with me, from John Williams’ classic score, to Christopher Reeve’s timeless portrayal as the Man of Steel, to the themes of hope and love of country throughout.  Obviously I loved that movie, and was just as excited about the 2nd film in the series.  I’ve seen them countless times since and they’ll likely forever remain my two favorite superhero films.  Great as Iron Man, The Dark Knight and other films have been, none of them hold a candle to Superman’s  pioneering films in my mind and none of them have stayed with me in the same way that these films did.

Seeing my enthusiasm for the character, and the films, my parents picked me up a couple of items that fueled my “Supermania” in the years to come including the classic “S” symbol that would hang in the window and reflect the shield’s design into my room when the sun hit it, as well as a bucket seat crafted in Superman’s blue, red, and yellow color scheme featuring Jose Luis Garcia Lopez’ production art in the form of stickers that were stragically placed to create actions scenes on the sides.  It’s been over 25 years since I received them and I still haven’t forgotten them.  I also have to be sure to mention the effect those old Fleischer Superman cartoons had on me.  We often hear about how powerful Superman is, how mighty his powers really are, but I don’t know that anything has quite demonstrated his strength and determination as these cartoons did.  He’s not nearly as powerful there as he is in the books, but the series creators were able to depict his feats of strength in such a way that you could feel his struggle to overcome the speed of a train, or the propulsion of a rocket, and you had to cheer when he succeeded.  Perhaps it’s because it was a little closer to home (than say, towing a planet) but if you’re looking to see some fantastic animation, some classic pulp-like action, and the inspiration for shows such as Batman: The Animated Series, please consider giving the old Fleischer cartoons a try (you won’t be sorry). Needless to say, I grew up with Superman all around me in the form of the Fleischer, Super Friends, and Super Power cartoons, television programs, toys and a fairly vivid imagination so it was only natural that I’d gravitate toward the comics when I began picking them up on my own as well.  I searched out old issues, new issues, and anything that featured him and Batman teaming up in those early years (see Batman entry) and in time I had a fairly hefty collection of Superman comics that I could proudly call my own.  Unfortunately, those comics, and a fair amount of appearances in other titles, have had to hold me over for awhile because its been years since I picked up the series with any kind of extended regularity, having been burned so many times in recent memory with just plain poor material (IMHO, obviously). Kurt Busiek’s run was my latest attempt and the issues I picked up there were pretty good, but I am really looking forward to seeing what Geoff Johns and Gary Frank have been able to accomplish in the pages of Action Comics when the TPB’s are released, having heard so many good things about the two major story lines thus far.  I’m also hoping that DC really has something worthwhile planned in 2009 to honor Superman’s 70th Anniversary, which wraps up later this year.

In wrapping the count-down up, save for Captain America only, no other comic character has had a greater impact on me than Superman has and I hope that there’s always a spot in American hearts and minds for the character.  I have two nieces who love Superman (and the Justice League) and I’ve no doubt they’ll share that enthusiasm with their youngest sister when she’s old enough to join in with them in all the fun, so I’m fairly confident that The Man of Steel will continue to resonate with new generations as they marvel at his feats of strength, and more importantly, for his moral convictions and selfless service to mankind.  When we can apply the example of our heroes, then they become all the more real, and all the more relevant.

This looks like a job for Superman!

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