Captain Price and the Mustache of the Ages

This is Captain Price, one the leading characters in Call of Duty 4, and an all around BAMF. Not to mention that his mustache/beard is indescribably cool. So cool in fact, that I'm thinking of breaking my rule against facial hair.
Today my mother and I went to the National Junior College Football Championship between Utah's own Snow College Badgers against Kansas' Butler College Grizzlies. It looked like Snow was gonna be trampled, but in the last few minutes they came back by fourteen points and tied it up, 23-23. The game went into double overtime, and Snow almost won it, but lost it on a faulty block. I have a friend who plays on the team for Snow, so that was reason for our going. Unfortunately we didn't get to see him play, since he'd broken two fingers earlier (ouch), but it was a great game. It was said to see them play so hard just to lose it at the end, but it was a lot of fun. I seem to only enjoy football live. TV just doesn't cut it for me. Strangely, I have an inverse relationship to Golf. Go figure.
I've been reading Cormac McCarthy's The Road. I'm coming off of a Post-Apocalypse kick thanks to Fallout 3, and The Road has been a fantastic read. There haven't been many books that I haven't been able to put down, but it's extremely readable. McCarthy has a style that isn't verbally dense, but requires thought to draw out what's behind what's been said. It's very human, and is frighteningly real despite its setting. Highly recommended to any and all who are so inclined.
I do NOT recommend Punisher: War Zone. Or should I say, Punisher: Crap Fest? I should.

Wolverine Down Under

Give thanks for Thanksgiving! Mmm...food. I insisted on participating in the preparation, and even made my own Sweet Potato/Chestnut mash! It was alright, and a good venture into cooking this break.
After consuming the food, we ventured out to see "Australia" with some family friends. I will not offer a review per say. I will say that if it has a central theme, it is lost in the 3 hours of movie provided. However, I enjoyed it overall. Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman are far too stunning a couple for us common peasants. That man is RIPPED!
What was most interesting to me (Spoiler alert?) was the overt symbolism of the Wizard of Oz. Oz, Aussie, Australia. There's magic, there's young women stuck in "Faraway Downs". On top of that, we have references to Peter Pan with the "Never Never", and "The Jungle Book" with Kipling Flynn (Rudyard Kipling), all revolving around the young Aboriginal boy Nullah and his search for identity. I think it's an interesting idea, with some big symbols and allegory floating around, but once again, I'm not sure that it goes beyond that. I'm also not as familiar with those stories as I'd like to be, and I wonder what the film would be like if I had that under my belt.
I'm a big fan of allegory and overarching symbolism, and I'm glad to see some in the theater. I don't know if it worked, but we can do with more of it as viewers. We can also do with more Hugh Jackman. Hey, I just realized that I got movies with Daniel Craig, Hugh Jackman AND Jason Statham this year. Hurray for British/Australian action stars!

From the Depths of the Vaults comes...an update?

Well folks, it's true. I CAN update blogs! Who knew! I will make no excuses for my un-bloggish behavior. I only hope that this humble offering will appease my friends, well-wishers, and internet based stalkers.
There is so much to cover, that I will simply start with what has been devouring my time in the recent past. I could talk about Seascape, Literature of the American West, school, Gordon Ramsey, James Bond, but no! None of it! Instead, let's spend our time in the D.C. Wasteland talking about Fallout 3, Bethesda Softwork's latest venture into the gaming world.
I have to say, first off, that no game spawns semi-plausible conversation like Fallout 3. I can't tell you how many times friends have overheard me talking about seeming mundane things, like talking to people, getting soda, listening to the radio, only to be shocked awake by a phrase like, "Then this Super Mutant came out of nowhere! But I liquefied him with my plasma rifle."
Tonight, I finished the main storyline. Which was excellent. I will say it panders to its audience, but why not? If you have a post-apocalyptic, sci-fi setting with strong 50's overtones, playing things up is more than acceptable. And really, the setting is ambitious. The whole game is set in a bombed out Washington D.C. and has HOURS of voice acting. Sure, you'll hear a lot of the same actors again and again, but the quality and quantity of it is amazing. Bethesda works very hard to immerse you in the world, and they do a fine job. The first person perspective is also a really unique vantage point for a roleplaying game, and aids in the immersive experience.
While there are a lot of great things to say about the game (graphics, story, gameplay mechanics, sense of humor, weaponry, art style), I was most impressed by the non-linear nature of both story and character development. Yes, there is a main set of quests, that are followed in a one after another fashion, but this is interspersed with a giant wasteland to explore, side quests up the wazoo, and many choices to be made in how to carry out these quests. This leads into the extremely varied character development. A friend of mine purchased the game a few days before me, and we played the game through at roughly the same pace. The amazing thing was, our experiences were extremely different! Skill choices make a HUGE impact on the game, as well as perks, bonuses gained at each level. My friend's character was hacking computers at every turn, and I was picking locks and charming people. The most impressive part of this system to me was the Karma indicator. Depending on your actions, you receive good or bad karma. This affects your interactions with certain NPCs, companions, quests, it changes everything! Not only that, it has a profound effect on the player. I started out trying to play somewhat morally neutral, but it got to the point that I couldn't make some of the bad choices without feeling guilty! My character ending up making a moral turn around part way through the game! I've never had a game tug at my psyche in quite the way that Fallout 3 has.
All around, the game is wonderfully constructed, and open for several playthroughs. I spent over 40 hours on the game, and if I saw half of the content I was lucky. Despite a few nagging graphical bugs, the game is a joy to play, and oozes cool. I mean, your dad is Liam Neeson. Sweet.
So, I know it probably wasn't what you were expecting from an update, but it had to be said! Expect more in the coming weeks, as I have considerably more stress free time available to me. This is Three Dog, signing off!

The Blog Shall Rise Again!

Well, I sure have been slacking on the Blog front, that's for sure. But don't worry! Things will start rolling again soon. Things have been busy between going home and getting back here to school, but expect a decently sized update soon. Adieu!

And So It Goes...

Well, it’s all coming to a close. Just as Captain America has passed, so too do I leave this summer behind and go on to new things. Tomorrow I fly back to Utah for a few days before heading off to school. Another summer gone, and certainly one of my favorites so far. Today was my last day at Marvel this summer, but hopefully I’ll be back again.
Today was a busy last day, but a good one. My supervisors gave me whatever they could before I left, particularly time consuming projects like scanning. I did a lot of scanning today, but hey, that's fine with me. Secret Wars was the name of the game today. Unbeknownst to me, Secret Wars was one of the first, if not THE first, big crossover event, which are now ubiquitous in the comics industry. Just look at all the tie ins for Secret Invasion or Final Crisis. It's amazing that there are any books that aren't connected to these major events. Just like any genre, when an original idea works, it becomes a part of the regular process, and then you have to think up new ideas. Just take a look at the old Superhero comics, and you'll have small changes like 2 page spreads and removing thought balloons have completely changed the face of the Superhero comic.
I was also able to squeeze in a few proofs today as well. More essentials (which take up a fair amount of time in the office) and Ultimate Power among others. While I love the Ultimate universe, sometimes it just turns into "______ vs. _______" , which is fine, but lacks a lot of substance.
I had a great time working at Marvel this summer. I would love to work even closer to the editorial process of the monthly comics, and the Trades department was an awesome place to be introduced to the company. Both my supervisors were great guys and wonderful to work with, and both said they'd pass on recommendations for me inside and outside the office. I really had a unique chance this summer to reflect on comics from many different angles. The fan in me indulged himself in the shear variety of merchandise and product available, reading whatever I could get my hands on. The inside look I got at my favorite publisher, while not comprehensive, was incredibly enlightening. Simply by being there you learn about the process and the environment in ways that you just can't from the outside. Finally, I've been able to do some reading on literature and comics in particular, giving me a much better understanding of comics in general. I also wrote a comic this summer! How about that? Really, it was one of the most incredible things that has ever happened to me, and while this summer had it's share of heartache, it was time of growth and learning in any number of ways.
I also had lunch with my cousin Peter today. It was great to get in touch with him and just talk. It's something I haven't done much with my cousins, and it was a lot of fun. I'm glad I saw him before I left town tomorrow. I'm also glad I shipped stuff home, or my bags would have been WAY over the weight limit.
Well, though the summer draws to a close, it is only the beginning for Exelcsior! Be on the lookout for more exciting updates and opinions. It's my life. Don't you want to read it?

Until next post true believers,

'Nuff said

Oh Bad Movies, Will You Ever Learn?

Hopefully, they won't, or I wouldn't have as much fun laughing at them. I will start by introducing to the coolest thing I have found in a long, long time. The Antimatter Multiverse is home to dvd releases of some of the worst Science Fiction and Superhero movies and TV specials ever made. I mean ever. How about the Nick Fury moving starring David Hasselhoff? Turkish Star Wars? The infamous Star Wars Holiday Special? They're all here for about $12.00! Oh, so tempting. At the very least, reading the descriptions of the movies and looking at the pictures and trailers is amazing. Oh, definitely check out Superman: The Musical from 1975. It is real, and it is ridiculous. Really, it's a good thing Marvel stepped up their movie making. They have alot to answer for.
While I always appreciate the blasts from the past, lets not forget that bad movies are still being made today! Let's talk about one I just saw last night: Star Wars: The Clone Wars. I want to say right off the bat, that the reason I think this was an awful movie, is because it was a good Saturday Morning Cartoon show. It basically followed the formula for what a Saturday Morning Cartoon (SMC) needs, and turned three or four episodes into a movie. Basically, you have a series of self contained adventures, and though they all piggy back on each other, they each have a seperate issue that needs to be resolved. So, introduce the problem, fight for a while and fix it, and then make sure everything is exactly the same as it was at the beginning of the adventure. Repeat this a few times, and you have a movie right? Nope. Sorry guys. Really, this movie should have gone straight to DVD. Now, I'll admit that I thought the animation was great, and the action sequences were really cool. Star Wars lends itself very well to animation, but the structure of the movie really brought it down.
However, I also want to say that I'm not trying to defend the movie that much. The dialogue was stupid, I mean, even for a new Star Wars movie, and most of all the plot was anything but engaging. I don't about the Hutts. I really don't. Let's not forget Anakin suddenly being someone who Yoda, yes, Yoda, would entrust a prepubescent girl to.
Finally, if we thought the days of stereotypical Star Wars aliens were over, this film has shown that they've just begun, thanks to Ziro, the big gay Hutt. This was just astonishing. I mean, with Jar Jar you can sort of fudge it and say, "That's just the way he acts", but a big, purple and pink hutt, wearing feathers, who talks with a lisp? Hoo boy, someone's gonna get mad about this one, and they have every right too.
Well, I have one day of work left. Yesterday was really busy. It seemed like I had 2 or 3 things I had to do at the same time all day long. This is good, of course, but also stressful, since everything we do is on a schedule, and so things need to get done. I did a lot of proofs yesterday, some good, some not so good. NYX was great. It's amazing how even though we've had the X-Men around for years, you can still do a great story about mutants that doesn't feel old. Another of the four proofs I did was a gigantic Punisher book. I only got halfway through it, and that was moving at top speed. Seriously, this thing was easily over 600 pages. The Punisher is another interesting character. He's certainly moved across the spectrum of anti-hero to superhero to just-plain-killing people, all with a variety of success. Still, I feel like you don't read the Punisher because you agree with him, you just want to see him kill guys and be hardcore. Really, he shouldn't be a Superhero. It just doesn't work.
I transcribed the biographies of few European comic book creators yesterday, and it's interesting to see the subtle differences in the industry in different parts of the world. Outside of England, most European comics seem to be focused around Science Fiction and Fantasy. At least that's what it seems like. It's just a testament to capitalism that Superheroes have defined comics for us here in the States, and not necessarily around the world. Well folks, talk to you soon.

Exciting New Product!

Well, though I promised a full blown post, I did manage to get my script online, so head on over to the Rogue Gallery and check it out. Hope you enjoy!

Adventures in New York!

My last day with Lacey was a big one. After making into New York and getting on the wrong subway line (lousy express trains) we went back to the natural history museum. There was a lot we didn't get to see on Friday. When we got off the subway, it was raining so hard, that water was pouring down the steps out! We made a mad dash to the museum, and only got a little soaked. Once again, the museum was great fun, and we got to see a cool IMax show called Sea Monsters about prehistoric sea creatures. It was pretty sweet. We followed that up with a trip to the Statue of Liberty, with a truncated NY Bakery Tour afterward. It was a great day, and the short rain was no real hindrance. We finished off the night with "Journey to the Center of the Earth" in 3D which, actually, was pretty fun. I mean, we weren't expecting anything magical, but we got a fun action movie with stuff flying at our faces. Also, I've decided that Bruce Campbell and Brendan Fraser should do a buddy picture where they fight monsters. It would be amazing.
Well, I figure I ought to give you an update on work, since it's been a little while since I've done so. As I've stated before, the proofs seem to come in waves. Some days I don't have many, some days I have almost nothing but. I find it interesting that I tend to only see proofs of a book at one stage. Rarely do I make a dummy book and then check over the proof afterwards. Usually it's just one or the other. The last few days I was lucky enough to see a book twice in the proofing process. I actually got to help put the dummy book together, then go through pagination and the initial check. Yesterday, I was able to proof it! This means that in the intervening period, the dummy book (or at least a copy of it) was sent to the printers, and they sent back the proof. Little had changed, but after over 500 pages of a proof, it can be hard to see differences some times!
Yesterday was a mostly proof day, which I prefer really. It gives me the chance to see a lot of different material and compare and contrast. I did proofs for a Marvel Essential book containing comics from the 60's, and two contemporary pieces, an adaptation of the Lords of Avalon series done in a manga style, and several of the Marvel Adventures books, which are marvel characters geared towards a younger audience. I was interested to see that the older comics have a lot of similarites with the Marvel Adventures books. They feature heavier narration, very action based stories that don't much more than an issue to complete, and more straightforward characterization. Now, I don't mean to say that the older comics didn't have their complexities and nuances, because they did, and Stan Lee does a great job of adding depth to somewhat two-dimensional characters, but I find it interesting that to make a comic for younger kids, they end up like the comics of old. It shows to me how comics have evolved out of the constriction of the Comics Code Authority, and the medium (and the superhero genre) have evolved as well.
There is a surprising amount of research that goes into the making of trade paperbacks, particularly for the older comics that are being collected. For just about every book, there are spreadsheets put together with research notes on issues, characters, etc. They aren't comprehensive, but they point out anything significant and/or that would be important for construction of the book.
I really enjoy meeting people at the office when I have to "run" covers. Basically I have to get a lot of signatures, and some of the editors and other staff are pretty cool about saying hi and getting to know you. It can be intimidating some times, and not everyone has time to talk, but meeting people is an important thing in this business. Speaking of that, tomorrow is the Joe Quesada lunch for the interns. Joe Q is the Editor-In-Chief at Marvel, and we get pizza and get to ask him questions for two hours! I'm still trying to think of the exact things I would ask him. I know I'd like to ask him something about writing, maybe "What are the most common mistakes new writers make?" or "What do you look for when you look at a submitted script?" But I also really want to ask if Stephen Colbert will be elected president in the Marvel universe. So tempting!

The Oldening

It's official folks! I'm 23 now. The big two-three. Yeah, it's not that exciting, but I had a great birthday. Lacey has been here since Wednesday, and we've been having a great time in the big city. Thursday night we saw August: Osage County, the winner of many Tony awards and a Pulitzer prize. It lived up to the hype. It was an amazing crafted show, and brilliantly mixed comedy and drama in one of the most enjoyable family conflicts I've ever seen. Absolutely worth the money.
Yesterday, my Birthday, was also a ton of fun. Nathan's grandma made an awesome cake, and Lacey set up the sun room with balloons and a banner, the whole shebang! Not to mention I got a lot of fun stuff. Lacey gave me the absolute Kingdom Come and some sweet little Star Wars guys. Eric Huberty managed to get a me X-Men #1 from the early 90's signed by Jim Lee himself! Whoa! A bunch of people at school this summer got together and took some awesome Birthday themed pictures, which were totally sweet! And let's not forget a Mighty Muggs Venom from the Handler camp! Later in the afternoon Lacey and I visited the American Museum of National History and the Guggenheim, both basically for free (the Guggenheim was pay what you wish, but we decided to give them a little money). Both were a lot of fun, and we decided we need to go back for more time at the Natural History museum. There is a lot of sweet stuff there. We finished off our night at the Hard Rock cafe for some burgers and headed on home. It was a great day!
The olympics have started, but I haven't seen anything yet. Olympic fever! Speaking of the Olympics, they're in china. Have any issues? Discuss!

Art: Form and Fantasy

Despite the really fancy title, I imagine this post will be fairly mundane. I recently scrounged through my "Pictures" folder and discovered that I had a lot of cool images that I didn't see very much. So, I put them all in a folder and now my desktop changes randomly every hour. After that I scoured DeviantArt for any cool pictures I could find, and now I've got a fun surprise on my desktop every hour! I'll scatter one or two of the cooler pictures throughout this post. Black Bolt, who you see on the right, is one of the coolest characters no one has ever heard of. Of course he was a Skrull last time we checked, but the Inhumans are going to venture out and find out if he's still alive in the next few months. This next picture is the cover of the first issue of that arc. It features Medusa, queen of the inhumans, cradling the costume of Black Bolt, her potentially fallen husband. I found it a really striking image. Medusa has so much hair because her power is complete control over her hair, which seems kind of weird, but is totally wicked in my opinion. I mean, you could have a head of full of blades to flay your enemies, or grab people, whatever! In any case, I picked up the next book in my required reading for the summer, This Book Contains Graphic Language: Comics As Literature, by Rocco Versaci, which is a completely rocking name. He's an english professor in California, and I've really enjoyed his book so far. The nice thing about the book is that it isn't a defense of comics, it's more of a proof. It's a hard distinction for me to explain, but that's the best description I can think of. He's not ranting about how Comics get a bad name, etc, he's simply showing that Comics have a place in what we consider to be "good literature", and not only is it comparable, but that the medium has unique qualities that give it its own place as an independent art form, rather than an amalgamation. In any case, I've finished the first chapter, and I'll keep you updated on interesting tidbits I pick up.
Work has continued to be great. I did some work with Indicia the other day, which sound way cooler than it actually is. Basicially the Indicia are things you see on a title page in a book, and every comic book has them somewhere, either in the front or the back. Interesting, according to Wikipedia it seems to be a term that applies mostly to postage and comics books and not other products. Weird. I've done a few different projects the last few days, including scanning an entire 60-page comic book. Despite the subject matter, that was not fun, mostly because the scanner always seems to scan things slightly askew, and the book I was working with had this nasty binding that never let me scan the full page. I felt really bad, but I didn't know what else to do about it. In fact, it made me feel a bit like that guy over there. Yeah, ok, that was a really bad transition, but I really wanted to put this picture in here, and I didn't know how else to do it. If Carnage was ever in a Spider-Movie, he'd look like this. Slicey, slicey! Friday there was an intern lunch at Marvel with free pizza. Sweet, sweet pizza. I didn't even have work that day, but I went in anyway, which was totally worth it. I met some cool people that I'd never seen before. Most people are much farther along in school than me. One intern was working on his PhD! That was crazy. I actually met a guy who works in web content who goes to the U of M. Neat!
I finished the first draft of my comic on Friday. It was interesting. I think it ended up being more visual than verbal because I did the breakdowns first. Which isn't a bad thing, it just means I'll have to try it another way next time. Once I edit it I'll probably post it up on-line. Also...I don't know what to think about this. Really, can anyone tell me what that was? It confuses me.
Of course, I send my best to the cast and crew of "Orange". I wish I could see the show. It'll be awesome though. Of that I have no doubt.

It's a Psychobilly Geek-out!

Well boys and girls, I can't resist it anymore. I've tried pretty hard to keep this blog from being just a list of cool stuff I've seen on the internet, and I've done an ok job so far. Today, that's all out the window. WAY too much has been going on, and I gotta let it out. I will try to keep these announcements to the things that were totally and completely awesome.
First off, the San Diego Comic-Con has, of course been a breeding ground for juicy nerd-food. First up, a certain mister Neil Gaiman will be writing-wait for it- Batman comics. This is very exciting. Not only that, but Mark Millar, who I mentioned in my last post, is also returning to Marvel's Ultimates universe, presumably to tear it down around us. In Animation news, Hulk vs. Wolverine was screened, and we also saw the trailer for Batman: The Brave and the Bold, the new cartoon coming out this fall. It's intended more for the kiddies, but hey, I'll still watch it. Speaking of kids and comic-con, the toy announcements were phenomenal, particularly on DC's side. The amount of new toys they have coming out is astounding, and many of them are characters that have rarely had toys ever made of them, including...The Question! In fact, there are 3 Question toys coming out soon, but I'm most excited for this one. We've been waiting for a long time, but he was held back due to legal reasons. And let's not forget Comic-Con costumes, including The Summers Family, A Henchman and Dr. Killinger, and Hot Booster Gold.
Next, on to video games. All I can say is that I'm glad I don't own a PS3 or a 360, because I would be circling the money drain. There are a lot of impressive games coming out. I will mention some of them quickly. Dead Space is a Sci-fi survival, horror game, where you fight creepy monsters (that used to be people) and try to stay alive. The coolest feature is that the music responds to the situation, making the game even more cinematic. Mirror's Edge is a first person game, which moves free running into the video game world in a dramatic way. I'd call it a shooter, but you can actually complete the game without shooting anyone. Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 should be wonderful as long as the gameplay stays about the same. The update in graphics looks amazing. DC has two games in development that keep looking better and better. DC Universe Online looks like more and more fun each time I see it, and, to my surprise, Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe looks like one the best fighting games I've seen in a long time. The Close Combat and Freefall features are cool in that way that they're completely ridiculous.
Finally, perhaps the most important link of all the many links I just posted. If you know me, then you know that there is a particular 80's movie starring one Jeff Bridges that is an extremely important part of my upbringing. Well guess what baby? Sequel time! I can't believe it. Tron 2! I am unbelievably ready for this to happen. And Jeff Bridges is back too! Hurray! Unfortunately, the title is unpronounceable. How do you say Tr2n? I can't. Also, Wolverine teaser trailer. Blob and Gambit baby! Also, Emma Frost?
Now that you've seen how much time I spend watching trailers on the inter-tubes, I am going run in shame. Enjoy!

We are Oscar Mike

It's a thing. People say it. Google it why don't you.
If you haven't guessed, that phrase is military jargon. There are two projects in particular that I've been following recently that tie into our current military situation in two very different ways. The first is War Heroes, the latest venture from Mark Millar, master of Superhero comics that retain what's fun about the superhero genre, without the innocence. The first issue of this six issue project came out last week, and it really was a fun read. The art by Tony Harris has just the right feel of realism to it to keep the story grounded. The premise asks the question, if the US continued to invade other nations, how would we get new recruits for the war effort? Give them superpowers.
The other project is a seven part miniseries on HBO. Generation Kill is an extremely realistic portrayal of a Marine Recon Unit in Iraq. It's based on the book by Evan Wright, which is a retelling of real events. It's really interesting, and is just plain good TV. The fact that it's so close to the actual situation in Iraq just makes it a little more hard hitting. If you do check it out (do it) make sure to go the the website and read up on the characters. Their rank is a bit confusing in the show.
I'm a fifth of the way done with my vampire script. It doesn't take me that long to do, I just haven't put in much time on it lately. But the first draft will be done soon, fear not. Once that's finished I'll edit it a bit and put a draft on the lines. Hurray for progress!
Last Thursday was another solid day at work. It's great to go in there to work. Honestly, I've said it before, but it's just cool! There's another intern there (an art intern) who brings his portfolio to work everyday, and tries to show it to whatever editors he can, even though that's a frightening prospect. Last week Axel Alonso (the editor of the Marvel MAX comics) took a look at his portfolio and gave him some useful criticism. I not only respect that in so many ways, but it's so cool to be working with people who really want to be a part of the industry. Also this intern is really good. I can't believe his stuff. In any case, it's a very encouraging environment. All in all the work proceeds well. I may have mentioned this before, but all of the proofing is good practice if I end up doing more editorial work at the office. Most days I have a few proofs, a dummy book to make, books to send out, comics to file, the usual. It's nice though because I get to see a variety of artistic and writing styles across my projects.
There's been a lot of news coming out of the San Diego Comic Con, a little too much for me to cover, so I won't. CBR has really good coverage if you're interested. I can't think of anything else I wanted to write, so I'll finish this post up with yet another link of interest: Lego Batman.

Uber-Creepy

Corn Starch + Water + Vibration = Really Creepy
Link One
Link Two

New Media and a Wonderful Little Resource

Before I chime in with another full blown post today, I finally got my act together and uploaded the short Documentary piece I made last year, along with my play. They are both available at my OTHER blog, The Rogue Gallery. I hope you enjoy them, and feel free to leave comments. Special thanks to Eric Handler and Paul Carpenter for helping me figure out how to get them online.
Also, I wanted to share a helpful little site I uncovered today. The Comic Book Script Archive. Now, if you have no interest in comic book scripts, then don't bother. However, if you would at all like to see what one looks like, this is a great resource. It is by NO means comprehensive or exhaustive, but it does have a good number of scripts from a variety of authors, many of whom are well known. So feel free to take a look! I know I already have. Then again you knew that too by now. Dang it.

Illuminating Reading

Hello folks! It's been a few days. I thought I'd do a few updates on what I've been doing at work, since that's part of why this Blog was started in the first place. It sort of depends on the day, but for the most part, I've done a combination of proofing, scanning, running covers and other materials, and mailing complimentary books to creators. Comps as we call them, is an ever present task, which depends mainly on the availability of appropriate packing and shipping materials, and the correct addresses of the recipients. However, this means that it fills in the gaps when there aren't other projects I'm needed on.
Running covers basically involves me running around the office getting signatures from various people. One things I've learned is that comics are a hugely collaborative effort. Everybody takes a look at these things. None of them are out of place, but it surprised me how many there are. After it leaves the office, the covers go an Editor or the Editor-in-Chief, Legal, Proofreading, Sales, and a few other people whose jobs I don't understand. Then it comes back to the office, and everyone looks at it again to make sure. And even then there can be mistakes, but they're pretty rare. It's always a little intimidating to ask the editors for signatures, but hey, face time with the movers and shakers is always a good thing.
Last Tuesday I had an awful lot of proofs today, partially because we had a lot, and partially because only one of my supervisors was in, so that limited what I was able to do. It's very difficult to look at a book without reading the words, but there's a specific zone of your brain that you can switch to that allows you to do it. This is actually a useful skill to develop, as recently I've been looking at panels with a more critical eye, and it really helps to not read the words. I've started doing this when I proof as well. Taking an extra second to just look at the page is worth it, since it allows me to see a lot of material in a short period of time.
Yesterday was that first day I did color proofing. This is the third type of proof I've been asked to do. The first two are similar, in that they are concerned primarily with layout, but this is concerned specifically with color. Not only making sure that color is appropriate (no purple carrots) but that it is also consistent. You don't people's clothes changing color. No sir! What was particularly interesting was that the proof was a re coloration of older material, so I was able to see two versions of the same line-work with older and modern coloring. Let me tell you, it can make a huge difference.
Though I don't have contact with much in the actual way of scripts, all of these steps apply to the production of the monthly comics as well, so it's still a very helpful endeavor. The more I can understand about the process in its entirety the better. After all, that's the whole point of this thing. Also free comics. *cough*
You may have determined that the picture I selected for today's entry is an illuminated manuscript. Today my copy of The Art of the Book: From Medieval Manuscript to Graphic Novel arrived, and I finished the first chapter on Illuminated Manuscripts! The book uses examples from the National Art Library at the Victoria & Albert Musuem in England to provide examples of the literal form of the book as it has developed over the years. We can't forget that form and content are inseparable, and I've already gained some interesting insights. The first of these is that Illumination was mainly concerned with structuring the document in a way that made it more readable. During the mid-1800's it became more valued for its artistry than it's practicality, but it fascinates me that some of the earliest pieces of literature we have demonstrate an understanding that the structure of a page, including visual media, can affect the way it is perceived by a reader. This is, of course, an idea that the Comics medium exploits, or should exploit, to convey its content.
I watched a 2 hour long special on the History Channel entitled "Star Wars: The Legacy Revealed", which basically showed all of the connections that Star Wars has to ancient mythology and modern history. While they had some great commentators, including Stephen Colbert, Joss Whedon and Kevin Smith, one thing stood out to me very clearly. People give George Lucas WAY too much credit.
I also saw Batman again. Guess what? It still rocks. There was also a trailer for a movie coming out in 2009 called "Terminator: Salvation" starring Christian Bale as a grown up John Connor blasting the crap out of killer robots. He is quickly becoming a huge action star. Who else can say that they've fought Dragons, The Joker, Robots, and corrupt Newspaper Magnates? Christian Bale, we salute you.

Something to Show For It

Ok, first things first, this is too cool to let slip until the bottom of the post. Speaking of posts, take a look at the images I've had on this blog for the past few entries. I wonder if that means something?
Well, I've been tinkering around with an idea for a short, one-shot comic, and I decided to pencil out some rough breakdowns of the paneling on each page before I write the script. This idea either came from Alan Moore's essay, or I made it up. Either way, it doesn't matter. I thought it would be a good exercise to try and put things down visually, and then write descriptions of those into the script, rather than the other way around. It'll give me a good sense of what a script and pencils together would look like. Once I have a script I'll be done with this project for now. Just for now. More excitement to follow!
If I can think of a good way to get the breakdowns online I will. I don't have a scanner, and they're not that big, and frankly, they're not that good, so I am probably too embarrassed to put them up right now. But give me some time. We will see.
It's tentatively titled "Bloodlust", and explores the life of a Vampire as one of an addict, rather than an undead Demi-God. I'm sure it's been done, but it was something I felt like doing, so I did. Hurray for progress! Expect to see the script when it's done, but don't expect me to answer too many questions about it before then. I guard my creative endeavors closely until I feel they can weather the storm on their own.
I felt like I was going to write more than that, but I can't remember what that would be. Oh well. In some unrelated Lego news, if anyone would like to spend $400.00 on this for my birthday, I would enjoy it. Also, a trailer for the Lego Universe MMO game. It looks like it's CG, and not in-game, but I feel like the last 5 seconds or so are a completely accurate portrayal of what that game will be like.

The Serious Matter of Super-Villainy

Dr. Horrible is over. I really enjoyed the short little series. Sad though. Oh well, cest la vie! Also, after having seen Batman, I have been contemplating who should be the next Batman villain featured in the movies. After some thought, my initial selection is The Black Mask. I think he has just the right amount of creepiness, psychosis, and non-superpowered
..uh..itude to fit into the current feel of the movies. Evidently the character who becomes him was also in the original script for Batman Begins, but was eventually cut, so they've already been thinking about him. Not only that, but he's the next logical step in the villains for the movies. The first movie had mainly criminal organizations, but also the League of Shadows, with no real supervillains yet, save the Scarecrow. However, the scarecrow presents very little threat when considered on a large scale, unlike Ra's al Ghul, who had city wide destruction at his fingertips. Then, we have a real supervillain, the Joker, who presents an incredible threat to the populace, but is clearly not your average mobster. Now, we still have the criminal organizations, but as they have made abundantly clear in this movie, a line has been crossed. So what do we get next? A supervillain mob boss. Now, I know Batman has a number to choose from in that vein, but the Black Mask's exploits have been big enough and serious enough to prove him as more than just a weirdo with thugs. He is organized, dangerous and crazy. So that's my vote, and my guess, as to the next villain. I also think we could see Bane thrown into the mix, but I'm pretty unsure about that.

Why So Serious?

I see that Max has a post about "the movie", but before I read it I'm going to put in my two cents. This is by far the darkest and most sinister exploration of any superhero scenario to see the big screen. It was fantastic. It has been a long time since I've felt really disturbed by a movie, and I cannot tell you how sad it is to know that not only is Heath Ledger not around to do any more of these movies, but that this was his last performance.
I'm not really going to talk about much else, so I'll do it briefly here. Everyone else was great. I had no complaints. The story was great, the acting was great. The action does deserve note. I have seen few films that literally deserve the term "action packed", and somehow, this film did it for two and a half hours. It blew me away, no pun intended.
Now, onto the serious business. The Joker was scary. He was absolutely frightening. The menace that he presented was something I have never seen before on screen. The only thing I can relate it to is in the comics, and only when the Joker is done right. This was it. He is an unstoppable force, almost more a concept than a man. He exists to work against Batman, against society, against the schemers. There are no rules. After all, it's all just a big joke in the end. I was blown away by Ledger's performance. It was absolutely stunning. All I can say is, the superhero movie is moving into new territory. Iron Man showed us that, and the Dark Knight took us down into the depths. I highly recommend seeing this movie. Even the sound work was noticeably impressive. Oh, and there's nothing after the credits. The only question now, is who will be in the next movie? My guess? Calendar Man

Alan Moore's Words of Wisdom

Yesterday I picked up a copy of Alan Moore's Writing For Comics when I was at the comic book store downtown. It was recommended to me by a peer at Carleton last year, and I decided since I'm endeavoring to write more than have been, it'd be worth picking up. Not to mention the fact that it's Alan moore. I mean, Alan Moore! His work is some of the finest examples of good comics writing the world has ever seen. He's the author of Watchmen, the comic that the upcoming film is based on. The book was only $5.95, so I figured why not, and picked up a copy.
Most of the volume (which is a quick 47 pages) is an essay Moore wrote early in his comics career, after he'd established some ground in his field. There is a short afterword written in 2003 that adds the viewpoint of the author some fifteen years after he had written the preceding material.
It was a very helpful read. He says specifically that it is not a piece that outlines the tools he uses or the process he employs to write comics. It is mainly his observations on the basis needed for good comics, and how to develop ideas into something more than that initial spark.
It was a well written piece, and I'm glad to have read it. It's broken into four chapters. The first is a general musing on comics in general, but also about the ideas behind them. The second chapter focuses on structure and pacing. The third moves into world building, and deals with environment, characters, etc. The final chapter is devoted to the subjects of plot and script, though it isn't a how to by any means.
There were several points that stood out to me. The first, and perhaps most significant, is that an idea is not equivalent to a plot. It is entirely seperate. The idea is the underpinning of everything, and has nothing to do with setting, characters or action. It's hard to describe, but it's basically the basic human underpinnings of your story. It is what will ultimately affect your reader.
Moore also elaborates on plot, and makes it a point to deemphasize the importance of plot, which I thought was the most important piece of all of this, and the hardest for me to conceive of. You don't even need a plot, necessarily. Basically, after reading his essay, I see plot in terms of a simple formula: Plot = (Environment + Characters) + Time . Once you have an idea, and you find an environment and characters that will convey that idea, you can simply add time and let it develop. You don't have to have an intricate plot planned out, you can watch things develop. Not that you CAN'T have a deep and intricate plot. You can, and it can be amazing, but it shouldn't be the end all be all.
One of the most encouraging themes I saw was a validation of my creative experimentation theory. You can have an idea here or there, either for plot, character, environment, even just a sentence, and it doesn't matter if you have a place for it yet. Eventually bits and pieces find a place, or they don't, but the more you have, the better.
In any case, I don't know that it's an essential read, but I would say that if you're interested in turning your creative inklings into something more developed, this gives some great pointers for $6.00 bucks. I will say that it really applies mostly to comics, though writers in general would also benefit from it.

P.S. That picture is real. Didn't I tell you guys I went to Alan Moore's wedding?

Rant & Roll

On the subject of trailers:
Watchmen If you haven't seen the teaser, it is online, and I have various conflicting emotions. Some things are spot on. Dr. Manhattan, Rorscach, and the Comedian are great. Even Rorscach's mask shifts like it does in the comic. Also, the scenery and the action seem to be taken very closely from the comic, which is as it should be. So that is highly encouraging.
Here is what I find discouraging. Stupid Zack Snyder and his 300 slow down business! Oh yes, it's in here. Grumble grumble. It's a different movie pal! Also, Nite Owl needs to be dumpy. He doesn't look dumpy! Not to mention that Ozymandias looks like a skinny nerd. He needs to be better looking. And my biggest gripe, is that the costumes for the aforementioned Nite Owl and Ozymandias, as well as the Silk Spectre, LOOK LIKE MODERN SUPERHERO COSTUMES! They NEED to be Silver Age costumes, and if not that, at LEAST in the style of 1980's heroes! THAT'S the WHOLE POINT! The costuming and look of the characters is INTEGRAL to the story! GRAAARRR!!!
*ahem*
Now for another rant, and a more sincere rant. The Spirit Though I did get pretty uppity about Watchmen, I actually feel that the positive parts will probably redeem the movie. The Spirit, on the other hand? I think they must be referring to Will Eisner's spirit choking to death on its own spectral vomit. Where to begin? Yes, Mr. Frank Miller, you may have done a Spirit comic at one point, but how does that give you the right to make Will Eisner's seminal work into...whatever that trailer was? Honestly! He's going to be running around talking to scores of hot crazy ladies, while Samuel L. Jackson occasionally appears in a strange costume and tries to kill him, while strange camera tricks keep happening left and right? The Spirit was about people! It was about reality. Oftentimes the Spirit wasn't really ABOUT the Spirit, he just showed up! How dare Frank Miller sully Eisner's name. I just don't know how to put my confusion and frustration into words. Even if it is a decent movie on its own merits, it can do nothing but harm what the Spirit actually deserves to be known for.

Inspiration

No crazy update with hyper links left and right today. Just some simple musings from a guy with time to muse.I was watching a video from E3 today from Will Wright, the creative mind behind the upcoming Spore. He talked about the fact that when he was a kid, science and creativity were a big overlap in his mind. The more I thought about that, the more I liked it. It's true to. Pure science, the desire to explore, develop, learn, create, is one of the great forces in our lives.
Of course this creative drive is not limited to science. I explore it in different terms, or rather with different tools. All the same, I know when I'm really exploring, and when I'm just mucking around in the sandbox. However, this experimentation is often a vital step towards higher creative work. I've certainly found this to be true in regards to my creative pursuits.
Just today, I went to touch up the short draft I'd written before. In doing so I looked up an older piece that had more appropriate formatting, and ended up expanding on that instead. So much of my life has been structured around completion, and not experimentation, that it often impedes my creative efforts.
Of course, it's fine for me to have a number of projects in various stages of completion. It's also more than acceptable, and in fact desirable to simply try something in order to see what happens. You need never finish it. This can be as simple as writing an idea down. All of this, however, builds a toolbox that we can employ in the future. There's no rule that says we have to finish everything we start. In fact, this is one idea that often keeps me from pursuing more creative projects. I don't like the idea of having something half finished, which means I more often than not have a project that's only in my head, not even on paper at all.
We start with something small, develop it, add and subtract from it, and eventually we finish with it. There is no universal judge to end a project. We do what we will, and then take what we have learned and employ elsewhere. This is the evolution of creativity, and what seems to be the core of Spore. It doesn't matter how we get there, as long we get somewhere.

Three Posts in a Day, Shame On Me!

Yeah, well, this is worth another post. It's this website called Wordle. You paste in text, or even put the web address of your blog, and it makes a neat design like this! The layout, color, and font are all customizable as well. This is one made from my blog. The cool thing is that the more you use a word, the bigger it is proportionally to the others. Try it out! It's a lot of fun.

Gotta Get My Media-Fix!

And wow, was there a lot of stuff to absorb! In addition to the aforementioned Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, there is a new episode of Defenders of Stan, just click on the picture and follow the buttons. It's actually a few days old, but I just found it today, and it is great! One of the best episodes yet. If you don't know, the show revolves around Stan, one of the last people on earth NOT to have superpowers, and his oafish pig of a brother, Captain Ultra, the world's most popular hero. It is simply wonderful and not to be missed.
There are a number of new cartoon shows coming our way in the next year or so, one of which is the Iron Man: Armored Adventures series. The first trailer was released a day or two ago. It's going to be 3d animation, cel-shady and all that. I'm sure I'll watch it, but my hopes aren't too high. It's nice to see the Mandarin playing a big role, but kid Tony Stark? If he's not old enough to drink, he's not old enough to fly that suit. But hey, prove me wrong kid. Prove me wrong.
There was also the release of a gameplay trailer for the upcoming DC Universe Online. It's being developed by Sony Online Entertainment, who were involved in the wonderful Superhero MMORPG City of Heroes and City of Villains. There is no release date yet, and that's a good thing, because this trailer was unimpressive. First of all, the appeal seems to be that you can make your own hero or villain, and team up with DC Characters. And that is huge appeal! That sounds awesome! Yet there was nothing, not even a hint about character creation. It was just vaguely implied. Not only that, but some of the animations look downright awful. I mean, it's great that Jim Lee is working on it, but I don't want to play a game if it isn't any fun, no matter how much I want to be on the Justice League. However, this is an early trailer, so I'm sure we'll see more soon, and hopefully some improvements. I'll admit that the first shot of Green Lantern flying around was really cool, so it's still one to watch for.
E3 also saw the release of a teaser trailer for Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2. The characters look great, and they've been making these games long enough that if they keep the gameplay everybody likes, have sweet graphics, and even more characters, I'm sold. And though I'll probably get it for the Wii, those tasty polygons definitely won't be showing up on my favorite little white box. *sniff*
I've been picking up the side issues to Secret Invasion, and I'm really glad I did. Hercules and the God Squad may be my favorite so far, but I read Secret Invasion: Fantastic Four today, and I'm liking that story too. Basically the Thing, the Human Torch, and Reed and Sue's kids are stuck in the Negative Zone thanks to a Skrull attack. Now to get home, they have to find Mister Fantastic's Super Villain prison in the the Neg-Zone, and break someone out that can fix Reed's machine. Sweet. The event is a lot of fun when you really get a picture of everything that's going on. The Skrull's didn't pull any punches. This is an invasion from every angle you can imagine.
I proofed a lot of books today. Probably five or six, ranging from Marvel MAX titles to kiddie Spider-Manga. It's difficult not to read them, not so much because I want to (which is true for the most part), but because I'm not used to looking at words without reading them. However, when you have 500 pages of Man-Thing to check, you figure out how to get over that difficulty. Today, while I was quickly scanning over these books, I was thinking about silence in comics. I've done a little more writing, and I have a number of spaces where there's no dialogue. I realized though, that not writing anything is very different silence then the silence of crickets or city sounds. I found it fascinating that not only do comics play with the visual and the textual, but there's almost a vocal element as well. We all know about "Kapow" and "Krrrnch", but what does it mean if a panel has no audio cues, sound effects or speech? It's an element that can profoundly affect the way a comic is absorbed.
Today a bunch of the interns were talking about useless super-powers. They were presented in a "would you rather" format. I should have written them down, but here's what I can recall:
Would you rather be able to:
1) summon any condiment you want in bottle form OR change the color of people's teeth?
2) be unable to fall, but then have to tap dance for 5 minutes OR flap your abnormally large eyebrows to hover 2 feet above the ground?
3) remove your feet and detect them with a "foot sense" OR flush any toilet in a 30 mile radius?
Whew! That was a meaty one. Enjoy it well, my friends. I'll check in at the end of the next patrol. Starbuck out.

P.S. Did I mention that one the assistant editors in my department is named Alex Starbuck? Awesome, huh!

A Must-See! Whedon Does it Again!

So, the first act of Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog is out, and it is fan-freakin-tastic. It simply must be watched. And it's nice to see that Felicia Day of "The Guild" fame is getting more work. In any case, see it now! You'll love it. Also, stay tuned for a more comprehensive update tonight.

Ah MEGO, the Pinnacle of Toy Design

I know I've usually been putting a neat little picture on my posts that is somewhat related to the content. This isn't. MEGOs are just cool. Once again, thanks to Jessica Fleutsch for the wonderful 12" MEGO Hulk she found for me in California. He's smash-tastic!
Well, I finished Maus. Once again, it's absolutely worth your time, whether you like reading Comics or not. A really moving work. Also, a work called Stuck Rubber Baby by Howard Cruse, a graphic novel about growing up gay in the south during the civil rights movement, has been recommended to me by Rachel Teagle, so I pass that on to all of you.
Since Nathan was home this weekend, I got caught up on my summer movies. Admittedly I wasn't very far behind, but now I'm back on track. First we saw "WANTED", and I feel the same way about it that most reviews I've seen do. If you haven't read the comic books by Mark Millar and J.G. Jones, it's an incredible action movie! Seriously, there is one of the coolest action sequences I've seen the Lobby Scene in the Matrix. However, Nathan lent me the book, and I can say that if you've read the work, the movie is NOTHING LIKE IT AT ALL. Seriously, its connection to its source material is so tangential, it can be barely be said that it's based on it all. Really, I was amazed that the movie I saw could still legitimately be called "WANTED". It's still a really fun action movie though, but the book is cooler.
On to Hellboy II. This was a wonderful movie. The development of the Characters is so thorough and rich, that it really takes the movie one step above the other action movies we've seen this summer. Take that, a fun story, great action, and just the right mix of humor, and you've got a great movie. I think that I like Hellboy I just a little bit better, but just a little tiny bit, and only because I prefer the Lovecraftian enemies to the fairy tale side. Nonetheless, this was one of the most solid summer action movies that's been released this summer.
That's all I got for now, just a quick post to tide you over. Have a good weekend!

Not All Comics Have Superheroes...

Woo! Sorry about no update yesterday. I was, as they say, "teh sleeps." Ok, they don't say that, but if they did, it would mean I was tired. And I was.
Firstly, I had stayed up until two the night before reading "Maus" by Art Spiegelman. It's a comic that I've been meaning to read for years now, but I've just never really taken that extra little bit of time and effort and done it. Well, thankfully, Naomi Riemer has a copy conveniently in her room!
It really is excellent. Spiegelman's art seems simple on the surface, but this simplicity is a deliberate choice that stands in contrast to the serious subject matter discussed in the book. Not only that, but he has an excellent sense of framing and paneling, which subtly affect and inform our reading of the work.
The story is basically just his father's experience of living in Poland as a Jew during the Holocaust. Yet there are a few choices that add so much to the story. First, Spiegelman includes snippets of his conversations with his father, both about the war, and they're current life. It provides a rich context for the story, and anchors it in life. It isn't an abstraction, but a horrific event that has deeply affected the lives of many, and as we see, continues to affect them. Also, as you can see, the characters are drawn mostly human, but their heads are from animals. For example, the Jews are mice, the Polish are pigs, and the Germans are, you guessed it, cats. I can't quite put my finger on why I think this was such an interesting choice, but I find it very effective. The story is told about people, so it isn't about a cat holocaust on mice, it's about the Nazi's and jews and real history. But this single artistic choice somehow draws you deeper into the events. This artistic decision could quite easily be viewed as making light of the events, but it doesn't. I still have book two to finish, but it has been an excellent read so far.
Well, work was busy yesterday. Which is good. I like being busy. Basically I did what I've done before, but twice as much of it. So, lots of shipping, lots of scanning, lots of proofing, lots of getting covers approved. Lots of getting covers approved. You have to get at least 6 different signatures on those puppies: Editor, Proof-reading, Sales, etc. It involves running around a lot, but it's ok. That's what I really like about my job, is that I always have something to do. There are interns that work in the editor's offices. They mostly just sit there waiting for the editors to tell them to do something. Not as fun in my opinion, but they get to know the editors, so there are trade offs. This is definitely a business where it pays to know people, so that really is a great opportunity for them.
I had to proof one of the "Essential" books yesterday. If you don't know, the essentials are collections of much older Marvel comics that are printed in black & white. This makes them super cheap, so if you want to catch up on, say, the last thirty years of the Fantastic Four, it doesn't cost you a bajillion space-bucks. However, that meant that I had TONS of pages to proof. Luckily, because those issues are so old, if the printer has gotten the page off, it will be instantly recognizable. This is because the pages are "flat". In other words, the text is on the same level as the pictures in the file, so you can't skew one without the other. It took a long time, and I was basically just flipping pages the whole time. But hey, live and learn. I know a lot more about publishing now than I ever thought I would. Hurray for experience!

...and the speed of Mercury!

So titled because I want to get this done quickly. In that line of thinking, I apologize for spelling and/or grammatical errors that have already begun to crop up in my work. If you notice any, please leave a comment, and I will be happy to correct it.
I didn't have work today, but I thought I should expound upon my day on Tuesday. I realized I didn't say much about it, and it merited some words, be they sparse or not. It was a busy day, mainly because there was a glut of interns on 'Intern Row'. Basically there weren't enough computers, and there's only one scanner, so I had to wait around some points, but that's not too big a deal.
I had a lot of mailing to do, but we finally had addresses, so that wasn't too big a deal. A lot of boxes had been sent out piecemeal because we didn't know where to send them, so we finally got a lot more of them out. Eric, another one of the interns, and an all around nice guy, helped me mail some stuff out. He's working for some of the editors, Tom Brevoort, etc. Awesome! Hopefully if I intern there again I can see more of what that's all about.
I was able to do more proofing today. There are two times they have me do proofs. Can you guess when they are? You're right! Before they send it to the printer, and after. That way, they have two chances to catch mistakes before they start shipping them out. I feel like I can talk about what I'm proofing, since they've already published these comics, and the release dates for these collections have been out for months. Actually, I won't tell you what the first one is, since I can't find it on CBR. The second was the initial proof of the first four issues of "The Dead of the Night" featuring Man-Thing, Marvel's Swamp Thing. It was the first MAX series I've read, which basically means blood and boobs. Always a good combo. But it was fun. There are these interludes at the beginning and the end with this guy called Digger, which are very reminiscent of Crypt Keeper stuff. Interesting.
I also got to do more scanning. This was more color reference type stuff than what I was doing before. No breakdowns or things like that. And, interestingly, some were from sources other the comics. The Trades department is also responsible for doing the Handbooks you occasionally see released by marvel, and I'm sure that one way the get the myriad pictures they need is from sources like these.
That was most of my day though. Also running stuff around to get signed off on and proofread, which is always fun. You get to meet the editors and other people around the office, which is definitely a perk. Hurray for proximity!
In conclusion, American Splendor is a wonderful movie about Harvey Pekar. He writes a comic book about himself called, you guessed it, American Splendor. Definitely worth seeing. It's just an interesting and compelling story, that loops in and out of itself in clever and well done ways.
Also, a few links of interest. There are a number of my friends who are also blogging, so check them out on the side of my page here. Also, if you want to see my old Livejournal, here's the link:
http://kryptonitekid.livejournal.com I haven't changed much.

How could I forget!

http://www.drhorrible.com/

It's coming, and it will be amazing.

The Addresses That Never Were! A Mystery in Three Parts

Alright, so there actually is no mystery, but there is an explanation. When I was mailing out books today at work, I made a list of addresses we didn't have, and titled it as you see above. I thought that a particular famous cover from 'Journey into Mystery' would be appropriate as well.
Well, first things first. The season finale of Doctor Who was awesome. Nothing I like better than team-ups and overcomplicated plots involving throw away lines scattered throughout the last few seasons. Brilliant!
Now, on to animation! Batman: Gotham Knight came today, but I was lucky enough to see it last Friday. A friend of mine managed to obtain, how can I say, an "advanced screening copy" of the film, and we watched it on his computer. I really, really liked it. DC hasn't missed a note yet with their animated releases. If you don't know, B:GK is similar to the Animatrix. It's made up of 6 short stories, each written by American authors, and directed by different Japanese anime directors. What was really pleasing to know, was that they interlock with each other, so you get a whole storyline that develops throughout all 6. That makes it much more engaging than the Animatrix still collection. And the animation is very good. I give it a 5 out of 6, because the first one is drawn really strangely. Actually, the story in the first one is kind of weird too. So, once you get past that one, things get a lot better. My favorite piece was called "Field Test", though "Deadshot" was excellent as well.
The next DC animated movie is going to be Wonder Woman. Keri Russell will be playing the amazing Amazon, and Nathan Fillion of Firefly fame will be playing a large role as well. Not to mention Alfred Molina as Ares. Oh british accents, you are so evil! I have no doubt that it will at least be good, if not great.
On the Marvel side, their movies don't seem to be getting much better. Their next release looks like poop. Instead of making a good animated Avengers movie, which has failed twice, we'll make one with their children. That's what everyone wants to see. Made up superheroes that are also kids. Boo. I just saw a trailer today for their following release, "Hulk vs. Wolverine". It'd better be an hour and a half of smashing and slashing, or I will be displease. That title does not scream deep plot line to me.
I just finished the Planet Hulk and World War Hulk trades that I picked up a little while ago. They were cool, which is a shame, because it makes the current Hulk storyline even worse. Smashing is important, but hey, so is character development!
I've been trying to figure out how I want to develop my ideas into a script, and I've seen some interesting things. One was a journal that Ed Brubaker is selling. It contains his notes for his Captain America stories. This seems right up my ally. This is a preliminary step, where he simply would list out a basic series of events for each issue. Real simple. I then like the idea of just trying to script some of it from there. Once I have a basic progression, then I can begin to think "Ok, so this event happens now? How do I see it unfolding? Would a spread over 2 pages be too much? I think that we would see them opening the door in the first panel, and then in the second panel, etc. etc." It seems that the more you can break it down the easier it is to build up into a finished script. This is why the art side has "breakdowns". You have to see how all the little elements can fit together to find the big picture. So if you have the big picture, you have to break it down. Neato. Even little things like that that I pick up from work are really helpful. Proofing books really helps me to see when people use certain types of panels, like borderless or spreads.
Eric Handler came up to the big city on Monday and we walked around and ate pastry for most of the afternoon at fancy bakeries! Mmm...pain aux chocolat is so awesome. Also, if he ever asks if you want to play Early American Chrononauts, it's not as intimidating as Fluxx, and lots of fun.
Anyway, if you read all this, you're awesome. Here's a prize!

more cat

A Big Steaming Pile of News

I want to say thank to everybody for the cards, e-mails, phone calls, visits, and everything else you guys have done to support me at this time. The funeral was held last Monday, and it was a wonderful service, with great attendance, and my whole family is doing very well. Thanks again for keeping me and my family in your thoughts and prayers.
So much stuff to cover! Eek! Well, since you may be wondering about the picture, I would like to announce that the trifecta that is Blizzard's awesome franchise's has finally consumed my soul. After the announcement of Diablo III (which looks AWESOME!) I finally broke down and bought Diablo II. Which is totally sweet. Now I know what everyone has been talking about! It's very sad to note that I am now playing less WoW because I'm playing another Blizzard game. Curse you Metzen and you're engaging worlds! The picture on the right is of a Barbarian from Diablo III. I'm playing a Paladin in II right now, which is awesome. It's amazing how much the design of WoW is based on Diablo mechanics. It's neat, and Eric and I will have to play some time soon.
I will be back in New York on Monday. I'm taking a red eye flight, which is very uncool, but also very cheap, so it balances out. I'll have Monday to recuperate before going back to work.
I obtained an external hard drive today. I got it for the cheaps on buy.com, and now I have 320 gb of space! I moved 20 gigs of iTunes TV shows over today. I'm still trying to figure out what to do with all of that space, but I'm sure I'll think of something. Dual boot anyone?
I've been buying some of the parallel Secret Invasion stuff, and it's actually really cool. They all tie in to the 3 or 4 main storylines, so buying the extra stuff really fills out what's going on. My favorite one so far is Nick Fury's motley crew and his eventual return. That guy rocks. Admittedly it's a little hard to follow it all, because each series jumps around between the stories from issue to issue, but hey. That's marketing.
Lacey was out here for the weekend of the funeral, and a bunch of us went to see WALL-E. This may now be my favorite Pixar movie. I loved it. Absolutely fantastic. If you haven't seen it yet, do it. Everything about it is top notch, but the visuals really took a leap forward in my opinion. When I saw the ruined earth at the beginning of the movie, I decided that Pixar should make a fantasy movie. It would be awesome.
Also on the subject of movies, my good friend Nick invited me to see Hancock last night. This was also a great movie, and one of the great things about it is that really doesn't end like you'd expect it to. It was an original concept for a Superhero movie, and it was very well executed. If you're not into the mainstream beat em ups like Hellboy is sure to be, check out Hancock. And if you are, still check it out. It's cool stuff.
I've been thinking a lot about trying to run a Superhero RPG campaign next year, when I remembered that I "obtained" a copy of the Mutants and Masterminds rules on my computer! There's a whole lot of them, obviously, but I'm going to check them out. I think it could be a whole lot of fun.
All in all things are going well. I've noticed that I've bought more stuff recently than I usually do, but hey, stuff is fun. Tomorrow I'm going to help my mom make Cherry pie! Hurray! Hopefully I can work a little more on the Superhero Horror comic I'm tinkering around with. I'm trying to finish a rough treatment, and then break it into panels when I have the whole story. We'll see if that's an efficient or effective process. It seems like it will be easier, basically have a rough draft that I can then arrange into a real script. This is where my other attempts have fallen short. I don't know why I didn't think of it earlier. I've seen a few scripts lying around the office, and some have alot of description that isn't necessarily for the panels, but are just outliney story kind of stuff.
Also, Doctor Who is intense. And it had better still be David Tennant. IMDB says it will be, but we'll see. Paul, if you know, tell me. The suspense is painful! I will leave you all now. For the Horde!

A little update...

Well, I got in to Utah just fine. The fam and I have been spending a lot of time together, getting things ready for visitors and the funeral. I got to meet the funeral director today. Nice guy, seems very good at his job, so that's a plus. In terms of the funeral, there will be a viewing Sunday night from 6:00 to 8:00 at the Warenski Funeral Home, 1776 N 900 E American Fork, UT. The funeral services will be held on monday the 30th at 11 am at the Cedar Hills 9th Ward chapel. Both are very close to my home, so if anyone is available and would like to come, you're more than welcome. Feel free to call me if you need directions.
All in all I'm doing really well. I think we all are. It's sad that he's passed, but after having to fight cancer for a year, we're happy that he is free of that burden now. We all know he's still with us, and moved on to the next stage in his existence.
Thanks for all of your support and calls and e-mails and such. It's been really great, and I love all you guys! e-hugs!
On a more random, and perhaps more average note, I recently saw two screenshots from the upcoming DC vs. Mortal Kombat game. Both of them are ridiculous, and I link them here for your perusal.

Invulnerability?
Super speed?

In Memoriam

For those of you who haven't heard yet, my father, Derek Russell Evans, passed away last night, June 24th, 2008, after living with cancer for over a year. He died in his sleep, and without pain, and we're all doing pretty well. We had time to come to terms with his condition and had a great year together before he passed. It's still hard, but we knew what we were facing. I'm headed home tomorrow, and will be there through the 4th of July. Thank you for your support and love, and I'll keep you updated on what else is happening.

Double Stuf Oreos: Too Delicious?

I have consumed far too many of these babies in the past few days. Nabisco must have a pact with the Devil himself, cuz these things are sinful. Far too tasty they are, but they seem so harmless with their tiny roundness. Curses!
I've been listening to the latest Coldplay album lately. It came out last week. I can't say that I've listened to it in depth, but from what I've picked up so far, it's kind of average. I mean, it's still good Coldplay, but it doesn't exceed their earlier stuff. Viva la Vida is definitely their best song. It's all good, and was worth the ten iTunes bucks I spent on it, but it's just a bit overproduced and a bit 'more-of-the-same' for me.
New Futurama movie tomorrow! Wow, that snuck up on me. I'm pretty excited. I mean, who can say no to new Futurama? I can't. So much media consumption this summer. Curse you for stealing my money! And curse those Oreos again! Why must there be so much stuff I like?
As I expressed earlier, I did not have work today, but will be in tomorrow. I hope that I might be able to work there more, but the flexibility is really nice. If I get some more creative projects going, though, the time off would be keen. I do want to finally finish/write a full comic book script, but I'm not sure where to start. I have plenty of ideas, and I'd like to develop "Steam World" more (my steampunk universe, title still in development), but we'll see where I end up. I'm currently obsessed with the idea of Superhero Horror, so I may start there.
Nathan and I started fleshing out a HiaHH exclusive superhero universe. We've already got some good ideas, but it definitely needs to be developed more. One idea that I particularly like is a new economic group, known as the "Red Collar" workers. They get their name from the Red Shirts of Star Trek fame, and fill the positions like henchmen, or the Science Police, etc. Basically a job where a super-powered person is likely to kill you in the line of duty. Oh, collateral damage. Most of the characters are humourous, but we're trying not to go overboard into completely ludicrous. It's a dangerous line to tread.
So, there's this event going on in World of Warcraft right now called the Midsummer Fire Festival. There's lots of fun things to do, and there are neat trinkets and prizes to be had for doing them. One main practice of the festival is visiting the bonfires that have been set up all over the world and honoring the flame. All you have to do is talk to a guy standing near it and he gives you some money and such. However, if you go to the opposing side's bonfire, you can "desecrate the flame" and put it out. This is accomplished by right-clicking on it, accepting a quest, and then their flame goes out. I haven't yet figured out what the process of putting out the flame entails, but I imagine that the word "desecrate" probably tells you a lot.
Well, that's all she wrote sports fans. I apologize for grammtical mistakes and errors spelling, but hey, it's free. What did you expect?

Doctor Whoopla

Well, the latest episode was certainly Donna heavy. I've noticed the whole season has been very 'traveling companion' heavy, but evidently that's been on purpose. I thought the episode itself was a bit clip-showy and boring, but the ending was totally worth it. I pictured Paul's delight at the return of Bad Wolf, which was freaking awesome. Also, another bees reference. Will that all important storyline wrap up? We shall see. I was most saddened by the fact that there was almost no Doctor. I mean, I know that was the whole point, but come on. He's the reason I watch the show! But the next episode (which seems like it'll be a two-parter) looks intense. Everybody's back! Torchwood, Rose, Martha, Daleks, the whole kit-and-kaboodle! I can't wait.