Monday, July 20, 2009

Moonlanding - 40th Anniversary



Firstly, its mind-boggling to me that the moon-landing has become a pet conspiracy of people who cannot fathom achievement. Your belief that "we didn't have the technology in the 1960's" does not, in fact, make it so. NASA sent brave men into space, just as they do today. We might as well have said the same about any explorer who ever stepped out of your personal view.

Secondly, far be it from me to wish for another Cold War, but I cannot imagine an America today in which our citizenry has the will or which would be willing to fund the effort it took to get us to the moon. Not when we firmly believe that every tax dollar spent is wasted if its not spent on us, somehow.

That said, I am of a belief that we'd be better off leaving Earth's orbit for altruistic, and/ or scientific purposes, and not for corporate or commercial purposes. Though I suspect the minute that someone figures out how to exploit the rings of Saturn to build a sharper television, that will be what gets us past the moon and out into the rest of the Solar System. Maybe Bradbury's Martian Chronicles (aka: "The Silver Locusts") had too much of an effect upon me as a youth, and maybe I've had The Prime Directive beat into my head entirely too much over the years, but until our imagination reaches beyond exploitation, I'm not sure we're ready as a species to break free from El Sol's pull and join whatever else is out there, moving between stars.



That said, its the spirit of competition which saw Apollo 8 ring around the Moon, and Apollo 11 touchdown on cosmic dust. I'd like to see that exploratory spirit, free of commercial enterprise, guiding us outward, so that when we can look back at our blue marble, we appreciate what we've got here all the more.

Today, The League salutes not just Collins, Aldrin and Armstrong, but the entire flight crew of Apollo 11, and the armies of nameless engineers, scientists, ground crew, and everyone who made Apollo 11 possible. We've had a unique opportunity as a generation born after Apollo 11, to grow up believing, utterly and completely, that with imagination, determination, intellect and will, humanity has no limitations. And I dream of seeing that again in my lifetime.



And, dammit, if its isn't a little sad Cronkite died so very close to the anniversary of the day he guided us through.

Whip It Trailer Now Online

Hey, here's a trailer for Shauna C.'s flick, "Whip It"



Thanks to, I think, Jeff Shoemaker, for sending me the link

Sunday, July 19, 2009

The League Returns From An Important Excursion (Part 1)

So.

I think Jamie is planning to do a post summing up the trip to The Bay Area/ aka: San Francisco/ Berkeley/ Oakland. I can say that we had a phenomenal time with Doug and Kristen, saw some sights, ate some foods, and generally packed a lot of good times into a very few days.


Jamie is the princess of Berkeley

Ten highlights:

1) Samurai exhibit at Asian culture museum near San Francisco City Hall.
2) Hanging off a trolley and enjoying industrial-age mass transit
3) A too-brief trip to Oakland's farmer's market
4) Finally seeing the 'tween movie sensation "Twilight", with Rifftrax and lots of wine
5) Thai food and "Krazy Thai Koffee" (the secret ingredient is love. And vodka.)
6) Comic Relief in Berkeley
7) King Tut exhibit
8) Mr. Mopps toystore
9) Taking the 1.75 hours you have to kill and getting to meet comic scribe Geoff Johns, one of my three or four favorite comic writers (I have no ranking systems) at Isotope comics
10) Reasonable temperatures

Leaguers may know that when we have an opportunity, The League likes to see comic shops in other towns. Sure, we'll always return to Austin Books, but its also a lot of fun to see what other shops are up to. Berkeley's Comic Relief is known a bit outside of the Bay Area, and Isotope has a great reputation out there in the world.

And, apparently, its a reputation richly reserved. Isotope may not have the square footage of Austin Books, but its a beautiful shop, and the staff was certainly in top form for the Geoff Johns visit. Owner James Sime is a bit of a comic celebrity, a rarity for a retailer, but he's managed a column/ blog or two in his time and made a name with customer service and high profile signings. Isotope has also received a lot of credit for its welcoming interior, which features some dangerously comfortable furniture.

We had tried to get in to see items from King Tut's tomb (but not the sarcophagus itself), around 12:30, but tickets were sold out until 5:30. We bought tickets, toured some terrific galleries at the De Young museum, and while eating hotdogs in the park, pondered our next move.

I had known Geoff Johns was at Isotope, but did not wish to, Sinestro-like, impose my will upon everyone else, and so didn't push on the subject, but we DID have a few hours in there, so...

We arrived just ahead of time, and I lurked a bit, eventually winding up in line with some really nice folks, just 8th in a line that went to the door. The guy in front of me had library-bound his entire Flash run (I had heard of this practice, but never seen it), and the as most folks in line were NOT from out of town, had brought significant items to have signed.

Johns took as much time with each fanboy as they wanted and was happy to chat.

Leaguers, I wish it were not the case, but when faced with Johns, I totally froze. It's not that surprising. I did the same when I met Tina Weymouth and Captain America at Universal Studios, Florida. Johns was gracious and was willing to talk less about Blackest Night and more about Legion and Superman, but I blanked in asking about Adventure Comics and a thousand other things I would have happily asked him about had I not totally clammed up. I did get out a question or two about the upcoming "Secret Origin" series.



I had mentioned, while in line, that I was from Austin. While Johns was signing my purchases, James suddenly presented me with a copy of the Blackest Night #1 variant cover edition for Johns to sign. For free.

That, non-comic nerds, is about the awesomest fanboy moment you're likely to have, short of Green Lantern himself showing up and recruiting you for the Corps.

I did plug Austin Books to Johns, and implored him to come to Austin. I know we'd treat the guy right. And I didn't throw up, which is something entirely likely to happen when I get that excited.

Anyway, thanks to Jamie and Doug for schlepping all the way across the city with me to Isotope. Thanks to Kristen for picking us up. And thanks to Isotope, James and Johns for adding a classic fanboy moment to what was already an outstanding trip.

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

See you on Sunday night (maybe)

Time for The League to kick back, relax and maybe have a few cocktails.



We're headed out.

You guys take care.

HSN is really, really ready for the Yuletide

The Home Shopping Network is selling Christmas decorations. It is 07/14. Only 5.3 months until CHRISTMAS.

I bought this toy



Not just because its Ryan Choi, The Atom. But because he's got a weapon that hits people with PROTONS.

I like my Atom with more science than whatever the last run was (or most runs, meaning I kind of like The Atom as utility science guy). Science-ish fiction.

Nice to have a toy based maybe something on the LHC.

His little widget/rod thing is kind of a mace. Maybe a mini-LHC. And, of course, the LHC "is intended to play exceptionally violent and scientific games of sub-atomic curveball billiards, in which protons will barrel round corners and smack into one another at close to light speed. This will cause them to explode, hurling various kinds of mysterious sub-subatomic gubbins in all directions." Just about what you'd expect The Atom to be doing in the comics, really.

So, basically, he's smacking people with protons, as if their face were yet another proton. And that is awesome.

Monday, July 13, 2009

A few Items

Short post, and then probably no post tomorrow night. And then none for a while as Jamie and I head out for San Francisco (don't tell anyone, but we hear there's gold out in Californie! GOLD!!!).

Wolfman Reshoots

So, remember when I was asking last week about where the Wolfman movie was? Ask and ye shall receive.

Sounds like reshoots. Lots and lots of reshoots. Which... well, it explains why the things isn't here now.

1) Sounds like Rick Baker's company is involved. So... I'm sort of surprised that there's any creature design problems.

2) I kind of want to give Joe Johnston credit, because he was responsible for some movies I've enjoyed (Rocketeer, and, uhm...). But his stuff is also mostly painfully formulaic stuff.

So... not exactly sure what went wrong, but if they want to make the creatures more awesome... The League can wait.

I enjoy the original Wolfman movie. Its got its own brand of pathos that all good monster movies are really about. One day I need to spend some time overthinking the movie, and make postulations about how its really about race or the rise of fascism or some such. But its mostly just about a guy who becomes a werewolf-guy, and he really doesn't want to BE a werewolf guy (it totally screws with his love life).

What to do while The League is Gone?

I dunno. Go to Facebook and goof around on The League's Facebook page.

Why not try out that whole "Discussions" tabs.

Surely you people have something to talk about when I'm not here?

Blackest Night - Comic Book Stuff

Rumor has it that DC is giving away a Black Lantern ring as a promotional item this Wednesday. I'll be on a plane instead of grabbing my ring. Why did I agree to fly on a Wednesday again?

Someone get The League a ring.

Maybe if I say "Austin Books" here, Brad will get a Google alert and grab me a ring? Especially if I talk about what a great place Austin Books is and how much I enjoy their down home comicky hospitality and wide array of comics? And how you'd be a damn fool to buy your comics anywhere else?

Well, a man's got to try.

Astronauts

I've been wanting to watch The Right Stuff again lately. Not sure why.

And then I turned around in someone's office at work today and they had a picture of Sam Shepard in their office. Apparently he gave a whole mess of his stuff to the UT Libraries. There's a "Right Stuff" display at the Benson Collection. Huh.



Apollo 13 is a good movie and all, but...

Pals

Thanks to folks we spontaneously got together with this weekend. It was fun. I sort of thought I was going to be watching TV all weekend.

Ya'll Take Care

I'm going to be posting pics to Facebook and stuff while we're gone. So keep up with me there, I think.

I've got the damn Blackberry now, so e-mail me if you have a Superman emergency or whatnot.

Because I can't take the high road

Apparently I was slightly off. Jon of "Jon & Kate" did not head to Tahiti with a stripper. He went to St. Tropez with Kate's plastic surgeon's daughter.

Which... Man.

Here. And, yes, the situation is a mess and I'm ashamed. Blah blah blah. But who called it?

The website sums up exactly how I feel:

He left the confines of his marriage with a stentorian control freak for the nearest party girl. It’s so predictable and awful that I can’t help but feel an immense schadenfreude that makes me want to dance down the street and wave to strangers.

See you in hell, everyone!


Thanks to Randy for keeping me neck deep in my shame.

Pleadings Watch Party

Hey, Leaguers!

I've recently obtained an official copy of the movie "Pleadings" written by the League's own JimD and Alistair. So, I'm thinking "Austin Area Pleadings Watch Party".

I've seen the movie, and it is hilarious.



Actually, it's really, really not. But why not watch the movie together? I'll make popcorn.

I can't do it any time in the next two weeks (we're in San Francisco, and then I got a thing the next week), so let's look at August 1.

E-mail me or comment if you're interested in attending.

Here's a whole bunch more about Pleadings at Facebook.

Sunday, July 12, 2009

In the News

Superman and Batman arrested in New York.

The best thing about this whole Bush surveillance deal? You choose!
(a) we'll never really know what happened
(b) someone thought this @#$% was a good idea
(c) now that someone went ahead and put this thing together, its not going to go away
(d) you just know that absolutely nobody is going to actually have to go to jail over all this
(e) someone is going to tell me that I shouldn't be concerned about this sort of thing

We thought we were going to be witness to some bad stuff at Barton Springs yesterday, but all ended well.
Jamie discusses here.
Here's the news report.

And the Dems demonstrate, once again, why they appear to be completely ineffective at government when they should be able to push just about anything through. A claim I'm finding, once again, difficult to dispute. I predict 2010 will be a repeat of '94 (popular prez, congressional dems decide to sabotage everything that got the guy voted into office. I might need to put on my Docs and start wearing flannel plaid).

While Fox News demonstrates, once again, that there are some uncomfortable undercurrents to the messaging and standpoints of their mouthpieces.

Dick's Classic Garage in San Marcos

There's a new car museum in San Marcos very close to Jamie's folks' house.

It's a surprisingly good museum which just opened yesterday.


Me in front of the elusive Tucker. One of 51 made. One of 48 in existence. This one has never really been driven. Something like .04 miles on the dial. It's tough to gauge the value on such a thing, but it's an extremely rare car.

Yes, that's a poster from the movie. There was also a TV showing the movie or clips from the movie.



Jamie and her dad with a 57' Chevy. American classic.



I completely forgot which car this was. But Jamie improves every shot she's in.



Back when cars had style... a beautifully restored Duesenberg. Steampunk was apparently a bit real in the 1920's.

Austinites will be glad to know the place is only about a 25 minute drive from our door, so do your math from there.

Saturday, July 11, 2009

io9 article on Superman

I really didn't want to click the link on this story at io9 (Sigmund had also sent me the link. Thanks, Sig! And happy belated b-day!).

But I'll tell you why I liked the article.

A) This person seems to have actually read the Superman comics and have a working knowledge of Superman's history, which many writers seem to find surprisingly irrelevant when discussing The Man of Steel.

B) The author recognizes that as a fictional character with a lengthy history, Superman is not completely doomed to actually be whatever the latest incarnation appeared to be in feature films, on TV, etc...

C) He actually calls out these stewards of the property, more or less, on a lack of vision. (I'd go so far as to suggest that to live the life of a movie studio chairman, you're probably also so far from knowing what an honest to goodness decent person looks like anymore, the idea of Superman would seem quaint, alien and freakish.)

D) He points out how Batman worked with the culture at key particular points that may or may not have had much to do with the character himself (I'd argue that we didn't really see anything resembling what/ who I consider to be Batman on film until "Batman Begins", and that Nolan sealed it up with "Dark Knight". Also, Batpods are awesome.).

E) The author understands that there's a difference between a bad idea and bad execution. Superman III and IV (and these days its hip to say Superman returns was awful, but I'll still go to the mat for that movie compared to 75% of Marvel's output) were terrible movies who slipped into camp when the largely straight reading of Superman I was what made it a classic.


I love the character of Batman, so I find it ridonkulous that folks feel like they have to take up sides, like they're picking a sports franchise to back. There's room for all the big guns.

I haven't addressed the legal issues between the Siegels and Warner Bros., because, frankly, I don't understand much of any of it, and I'm sort of cheering for both sides to win. I'd love to see the Siegel and Shuster estates receive their due, but find a way to negotiate with WB, who truly have done an amazing job of keeping a pulp character alive in a completely unequaled way for 70+ years. (How many kids do you see wearing Doc Savage, Buck Rogers or The Shadow t-shirts on college campuses?).

The Adventure Begins...


twenty seconds before the guitar twanging started up and Randy had a whole mess of trouble on his tail

I have no idea what is happening here, but when JimD sends you a pic of the General Lee and Randy with a glint of danger in his eye, well... adventure is afoot, Leaguers.


it all started innocently enough with this young lady who is NOT Mrs. RHPT.


Do not worry. The guiding spirit of Willie is there to lead them through.

Friday, July 10, 2009

Green Lantern Movie



It sounds like the Green Lantern movie is sort of moving ahead.

Randy and I had exchanged some e-mails today as rumors were abounding that Justin Timberlake had screen-tested for the Green Lantern movie. Massacremike discusses here.

WB has not gone with the Mother Lover.

Instead, they've decided to go with Mr. Johannson himself, Ryan Reynolds. Marrying Scarlett Johannson, getting a role in Wolverine that could spin out into a franchise (Deadpool. FYI.), and now getting the role of Hal Jordan? 2009 is working out well for this dude.

Here's the article at Variety, which sort of makes it official. (Thanks for the article, Randy!)

Is Ryan Reynold's my first choice? No. Is he much better than what could have happened? Absolutely.

I do think an early-career Hal Jordan should NOT be an everyman. After all, he's a test pilot, is selected by the Guardians because of his willpower, is one of the few Lanterns to challenge the Guardians, and is generally considered to be a bit pushy and a loose cannon, by GL standards. And I think Reynolds can do that.

Now, the question is: Who will they cast as Sinestro, Abin Sur and others? And how many characters will be entirely CG? How do you portray Tomar-Re? (Please do not let them make Kilowog some moron in a rubber suit, a la Chiklis as the The Thing).

The script is supposed to be by a couple of TV and comic writers. if you've watched Elias Stone or have been reading Spider-Man lately, you've probably read Guggenheim's work.

Anyhow, its a wait and see game now, as per whether or not this thing will be any good. I'm not holding my breath.


Thursday, July 09, 2009

Rollerderby flick, Wednesday Comics, Vaycay, Facebook Fans, Dance Show, Wolfman

Rollerderby on the Silver Screen

So League-Pal, Shauna C., has a movie scheduled to arrive in October. Shauna wrote the original novel "Derby Girl", and the screenplay for 'Whip It!". The cast on the movie is sort of amazing, with folks like Ellen Page and Marcia Gay Harden signed on.

I should also point out that my current favorite of the SNL cast, Kristen Wiig, plays a major role as Maggie Mayhem. Maggie Mayhem was, not coincidentally, Shauna's nom-de-derby when she wore her quad-skates. Alas, I think Shauna was pregnant when the movie was being shot, so don't expect to see her on skates in a cameo.


Story in USA Today.

Here's an article/ images at slashfilm about the feature.

I sincerely hope The Alamo has the foresight to team up with TXRD to make an event out of the film's Austin debut.

It all makes me miss AZRD's Surly Girlies.

Wednesday Comics

I was looking forward to DC's newest venture, Wednesday Comics, for quite some time. Not only did the comic not disappoint, but it surpassed my elevated expectations.

Generally I shudder at the idea of the art winding up as the focus of a comics from American superhero comics, as this tends to lead to temporary fan-favorite artists relating tedious stories while pouring their all into work that simply doesn't deserve it (see Image comics circa 1994 - ignoring The Maxx, which was actually sort of interesting).



Wednesday Comics managed to avoid becoming an exercise in artistic overindulgence. I'll attribute the success to a limited scope and story, told one page per week over 12 weeks, which tends to make one use the economy of haiku. Some pages were written and drawn by the same person, most were not. By and large, the writers were wise in their limited use of narration and dialog, and got out of the way so that art, page layout, etc... could tell the tale.

The format, by the way, is a full newspaper-sized page, printed on newsprint, suggesting that the comic in an oddly temporary thing. In a writer-driven environment that the superhero market has become, its great to see the craft of the comic page take over and be celebrated for itself. While I deeply enjoy the gestalt of something like Rucka/ Williams III on Detective, and would love to see Williams III get a chance to play in such a massive environment (I have the Promethea posters, but Jamie has not allocated space for them), there's something unique about this project that people will be discussing for a while.

There's an oversized "Little Nemo" book I've always wanted that collects Winsor McCay's sprawling, page wide cartooning, which was quite the deal about 80 years ago. That sort of cartooning has become a lost artform. Here's a sample at Google books.

As much as I love my pamphlet comics, its always fun when something new/old comes along/returns to shake things up.

If You're Going to San Francisco

you may just run into Jamie and myself, July 15-19. We're going out to visit The Doug and K. and get into an exciting car chase. So expect The League to go dark for a few days next week.

Also, if you have suggestion for activities (not just places to eat), let me know.

They tell me I am not allowed to saddle a sea lion and ride it around the bay. I say they just lack imagination and the right hat.

To prepare, I sort of want to watch Bullit and Vertigo. What's another San Fran/ Berkeley-based movie I should catch? (I just watched Milk, so that's kind of out...)

Be a Fan (at least on Facebook)!

So, I've updated the left menu bar of the site proper to include a Facebook badge that will alert you to some of our "fans" and make it easy to become a "fan" of LoM on Facebook.

If you haven't joined Facebook, well, get with the program. But if you are on Facebook, and haven't become a Facebook Fan, now is the time.

I've set up the Fan Page so you can set up your own discussions, load your own content, etc... You will also receive LoM messages via Facebook, be it a status update or a special Facebook update. You'd also get posts sent straight to facebook, so if you're already in there...

The Hard Sell on this is coming from my desire to secure a unique Facebook user name, which I can't do until I have 100 "fans". So why not go ahead and become a Fan?

So. You Think You Can Dance.

I always wonder what these gameshows would be like if anyone displayed legitimate cynicism. Not Simon Cowell's manufactured jerkiness and disregard for humanity, but sort of suggested that maybe the whole enterprise were a waste of time.

However, the fans of these programs follow them with religious fervor. Even if they can admit that "judge" Mary Murphy is a ridiculous, mindless air raid siren of a human being, they can forgive it in order to see the dancing happen.

It seems so obvious. How did we not put dancing on TV before?

While I'd never watch the show on my own (despite host Cat Deeley, who is a pretty good idea), at least the contestants are on their way to professional status. It's less likely that the votes will have an oddball result based upon things that won't translate well in the actual industry (see: Taylor Kicks and American Idol).

Anyhow, I've been watching this show again, like it or not, and so if you want to talk "So You Think You Can Dance?", I'm your huckleberry.

Wolfman

When the hell is that Benicio Del Toro Wolfman movie coming out? Isn't dumping it into November sort of a bad sign?

I had hopes, but Joe Johnston as director always sounded very iffy.

Wednesday, July 08, 2009

Taking the Night Off

I'm going to read tonight. Have a lovely evening.

Tuesday, July 07, 2009

Superman on a Boat, Wednesday Comics, Elvira at the Alamo, etc...

Working on some e-mail interviews for upcoming projects by Loyal Leaguers. More to come on that. In the interim, here's some other stuff.

Superfans: On a Boat?

Apparently someone is putting together a cruise for Superman Fans. A Cruise. I don't even know what to make of this.

Should The League be on a cruise with with other superfans? What would that be like? I can scarcely begin to guess.

Here's the promotional website.

From the Superman Homepage.

Sadly, a cruise is probably out of the question, anyway. Jamie can't do a cruise, so it's unlikely I would abandon her for several days of fun and super-snorkeling, etc... without her to go hangout with complete strangers. Even if they could land Noel Neill for the cruise.

I also have some questions about whether or not a cruise is the right way to express our Super-fandom. I'd think maybe something a bit more selfless would be a good way to stand up for Truth, Justice and the American Way (although taking a cruise in the name of a fictional hero does seem terribly American).

It's all very strange. Then again, I've never been on a cruise.

Wednesday Comics

This week sees the debut of DC's project "Wednesday Comics". If its been a while since you stepped foot in a comic shop, this would be a great week to do so. For a mere $3.99, you can get a tabloid-sized comic featuring the best and brightest in the genre/ industry.

I think Busiek is on GL. Stuff like that.

This week also sees a new issue of Superman: New Krypton and the fist official issue of the Green Lantern Mega-Event, "Blackest Night".

My nerd radar is going crazy.

USA Today is running the Superman section of Wednesday Comics online. View it here. (Flash is required)

A little forewarning: I'm kind of suspecting that these strips are more about the art than the content in some cases.


Rumble (by Ross)

Art for the upcoming Absolute Edition of the Jim Krueger/ Alex Ross comic "Justice".

I've been waiting something like four years for this Absolute Edition.


click for big screen awesomeness


Post from the DCU blog
with info on the book.

Elvira in Austin

So.... DITMTLOD, Cassandra "Elvira" Peterson, will be at the Alamo in July.

I need your help. You all know I adore The Mistress of the Dark, but I don't see myself getting to both Elvira screenings.

Should I go to see Elvira on Tuesday (the show with the better location and showing time)? Click here.

Or should I go to see Elvira on Wednesday at the Ritz for a late show, but with the movie I prefer of her two starring vehicles? Click here.

And... Who wants to join me on this adventure? Let me know which flick you want to catch!


I do not see any reason here why I would not wish to attend

Monday, July 06, 2009

OH MY GOD: Speidi plus Alex Jones = The greatest thing I've ever seen

Oh.

Oh wow.

Cavender had this on Facebook.

"The Hills" stars, Heidi and Spencer, have apparently decided to join up with local Austin-area conspiracy/ ultra-libertarian guy, Alex Jones.



Alex was a local legend (still is, I guess) who was on Austin Access Cable about 10 hours a day while I was in college and until I moved on 2002. Right about then he got on the radio, and his show was being listened to outside of Austin on the internet. These days he has a TV show off of Access, I think. His reach is now international.

If you want to know who one of the major voices was behind the 9/11 conspiracy stuff, look no further. First time anyone saw inside The Bohemian Grove and put the footage on TV? Here you go.

Now, Alex DID figure out the US Military was conducting illegal training in East Austin in the mid-1990's, spraying an unknown white powder on the neighborhoods, etc... And all of it was confirmed. Which, you have to imagine, is sort of like finding out that the guy who tells you the UFO's are trying to control his mind is RIGHT. But there you had it.

Jones is an interesting guy, partially because he does, in fact, occasionally dig up real dirt. Just enough to give him some semblance of credibility. And I wouldn't trade his brand of anti-establishment for the world (even if I often think he should probably think about more logical conclusions rather than assuming the Illuminati are behind everything).

But now he's got SPEIDI. His power KNOWS NO BOUNDS.

It would help if he knew who Spencer and Heidi actually are, but whatever.

CLICK HERE TO LEARN THE TRUTH

Monday Evening Round-Up: Ro-bama, Beer, Dune

The Robo/ Disney Conspiracy

It seems Disney has joined with the robots to work against us.




Beer Surplus Jettison Cooperation


Leaguers will know that my one regret about opening the doors to League HQ in celebration is that we often wind up with a great deal of undrunk beer and beer-like items (Mike's Hard Lemonade, etc...). Well, this is a problem no more.

We have a house full of recently graduated Lutherans living across the street who, upon my offer, seemed more than willing to take the surplus off our hands. Once again, our fridge is free for the storage of leftovers and numerous tupperware items of indeterminate storage points.

I salute you, Lutherans, for your readiness to consume that which we could not.

Dune

So, Leaguers, I have a confession. I've never read Frank Herbert's Sci-Fi classic, "Dune". Nor have I seen the movie in its entirety. I think i watched the entire original mini-series on Sci-Fi (or, SyFy, as they've rebranded themselves this week), but since I can't recall how it ended, I can't say for certain.

Its embarrassing to have a weak point in my nerd-armor, but there you are. I've no real excuse, but I've also always been a much bigger fan of sci-fi movies than I have been that of books. I read a lot of Asimov and Bradbury at one point, and some other stuff, but sort of lost interest in bothering to read the actual books.

But during our celebration of independence from the bastards in England, I got caught in a 30 minute conversation on the subject of "Dune" between Steven, Lauren, Eric and Patrick. And I figured... oh, hell. I might as well.

So posts may be short for a while, because I'm actually going to read a book.

Yeah, I know...

Sunday, July 05, 2009

round-up

Jason documents the 4th. That's a lot of pontificatin' hats.

Jamie posts on Team Swizzlebeef's latest.

There's a Facebook Page up for JimD's movie, Pleadings.

By the way, I failed to mention that last week was Jamie's one year anniversary at Troubles McSteans.

If you like comics, and you like superheroes, and ou aren't reading Mark Waid's Irredeemable, you are making a mistake.

One More Dead Celebrity, Coffee Talk, Torso Pillow

McNair

Man, if it hasn't been a couple of weeks to be a celebrity.

Now McNair? I'm not surprised the man wasn't exactly faithful to his wife (I know they're not reporting any romantic entanglements quite yet, but... As a mid-30's sports superstar and millionaire, I'm betting he wasn't just in the same book club with the 20-year-old "friend"). I'd guess the wives of pro-athletes aren't completely clueless and ask for discretion more than honestly expect much in the way of fidelity from their husbands.

And call me a cynic, but I'm assuming this is a murder/suicide.

After Jon Gosselin, Governor Sanford and now McNair, it is a bad time to be a philanderer.

But, hey, wow... Poor McNair. He was one of my favorite atheletes for a good while there.

Like Native Americans

Last night around 11:30, post fireworks, sparklers and cocktails, people started grumbling about being hungry. Sure, we'd had a cook-out, but we ate around 5:00, so I understood if they didn't want to go in for round 2 on the Tostitos and whatnot. I didn't want to volunteer to fire up the Weber again, so we headed to the IHOP at Slaughter and Manchaca.

In high school, I wasn't averse to the late-night trip to the Denny's (1960, east of Kuykendahl) for coffee and chatting. I learned the waitresses didn't care if you didn't order anything, as long as the tip was okay, and so my habit became dropping $5 to rent the seat and enjoy the coffee until I got the shakes.

The IHOP we visited last night wasn't littered with high school kids, but we were seated close enough to hear one table debating stem cell research. It was a surprisingly cogent and unheated debate, even if voices did rise loud enough for me to begin listening to them.

I tuned out for about 45 seconds to actually pay attention to the folks at my table, only to hear one of the high schoolers at the next table blurt out: "we'd all be a lot better off if we lived like The Native Americans".

Indeed, sir.

I'd say I miss that sort of just-enough-information-to-be-dangerous proselytizing one feels compelled to do at 1:00 AM at a chain diner, but I'm not sure it ever really goes away. There's just a certain way one goes about it at that age as you're beginning to be able to think for yourself, and a little Discovery Channel goes a long way. Declarations are made, and utopia often seems well within grasp. If only we (fill in terrific idea here).

His friends gave up too easily. There was no "how's that? How would things be better, and what Native Americans are you talking about, Mr. Cultural Anthropologist?" Perhaps the guy took challenges to his assertions poorly and they didn't want to provoke him. Maybe he was easier to deal with if they didn't prolong the conversation. Maybe they agreed. Sadly, they were wrapping up, so I never heard how we'd be better off with teepees, or if he meant modern Native Americans (who I worked with at former job. Here's a secret: they had no magical powers, unless you think accounting is a magical power.).

As they were walking out, the kid was insisting that "we'd all live to be 173 if we lived more like The Native Americans." I wanted so badly to see this 173-year-old Native American. But, man, it's nice to know that bored suburban kids are still sorting these things out in low-cost chain restaurants. It's a largely undiscussed artifact of suburban middle-class culture. You're not going to see kids wrestling with the moral issues of the day, debating the politics of their parents, what-have-you on "90210". And those shows sure as hell aren't going to be shot in a Denny's between 10:00 and 1:30 in the morning.

And, of course, we were having our own, barely-more-informed discussion on some other political topic at our own table. But, mostly these days, we rely on pontificatin' hats and a cocktail.

Give me 17 years and I will make no progress.

If it comes to this...



I will work something out for you with JimD.

Happy Post 4th of July

I'd say the Fourth was a success. Lots of folks came by. We started around 4:00 and wrapped up around 1:00. There was cooking out (over the hottest fire since Mt. St. Helens), there was standing around, there were cocktails, there was neil Diamond, and there was singing. And IHOP.



Thanks to all who came by. We had a blast.

Saturday, July 04, 2009

Neil Diamond knows what it means to be American



Dang, yo! Neil has the late 80's-era elementary school teacher fanbase locked up!

By the way, I totally love this song, and it will be pistols at dawn with anyone who says it is anything less than awesome.

Place your bets here...

So Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, famous for accidentally removing credibility from the McCain campaign (sorry, Palin fans, its true) has resigned her post as Governor.

My guess is that Palin received an opportunity for a lucrative television contract. Something along the lines of a talk show (isn't the modern dream to be Oprah Winfrey?) or something on Fox.

But, I also have no doubt that its all part of her plans for 2012. If that's the case, this voter is really looking forward to the primaries.

Any other theories?

Perhaps this recent Vanity Fair article could shed some light...

thanks to Randy for starting this whole conversation

Friday, July 03, 2009

Jeff Wilson (aka: Crackbass)

I am reminded that its now been three years since the passing of Jeff Wilson. Jeff, Sigmund and Kim were struck on July 3rd, and Jeff passed several days later.



Let's keep Mandy and Jeff's family (by blood and otherwise) in our thoughts this holiday weekend. And keep Jeff in mind, too.

Thursday, July 02, 2009

It was a dark and stormy night...

If you've never heard of the Bulwer-Lytton contest, its a competition wherein folks submit a single sentence. The sentence is intended to be the start of a novel. A particularly bad novel that does not exist (yet).

I only remember this contest every few years, but I suggest perusing .

Here.

If the contest does not give an aspiring writer a moment of pause when they look upon their own prose, they either lack the self-awareness and insight into their own work enough to be a writer or they have an unhealthy level of self-confidence.

Two of my favorites:

Darnell knew he was getting hung out to dry when the D.A. made him come clean by airing other people's dirty laundry; the plea deal was a new wrinkle and there were still issues to iron out, but he hoped it would all come out in the wash - otherwise he had folded like a cheap suit for nothing.

Lynn Lamousin
Baton Rouge, LA


No man is an island, so they say, although the small crustaceans and the bird which sat impassively on Dirk Manhope's chest as he floated lazily in the pool would probably disagree.

Glen Robins
Brighton, East Sussex, U.K.


That second one sounds terribly likely in modern fiction.

Tip o' the hat to Unloveable.

Happy B-Day, USA

Not sure what the weekend holds for posting, so I want to take a minute to salute the U.S. of A.

Whenever I might get a little down about the way our nation is headed, I get a little reminder, such as our friends in Iran, who are now in a struggle to see justice done, to be able to believe their voices and themselves and their ideals are known by their leaders and government. The past few weeks should be a reminder to us Americans and to our government that the government should never be too far from being us, that it should exist and operate with our consent. And when we challenge that government's will or authority, we are so, so astoundingly lucky to live in a nation where our government does not take to the air suggesting that voices raised in defiance should be permanently silenced.

But we're far from perfect. We receive daily and weekly reminders of the failures of government. I'm still keeping my eye on the events in Ft. Worth, which fell on the anniversary of Stonewall. Its not even surprising any more when governments cease-up as our politicians who run on their moral convictions disappear for long weekends over-seas with their mistresses. Our states go bankrupt (well done, California). That's this week's news.

At the end of the day, though, we are not our government. While I celebrate the ideals embodied in the constitution, even that document wasn't ratified until well after July 4th, 1776 (but that time for honest discussion did lead to the Bill of Rights, of course). If we're going to celebrate the day, I celebrate what, despite our differences, we do when we do it together. It doesn't matter if it's watching fireworks while the local symphony puts on its annual performance of the 1812 Overture, or whether its voices raised together as we mumble our way through the National Anthem. Or showing up at the food pantry, or to walk together to raise money for a cause. We're all of that, too.

It's foolish to buy the lines thrown around during elections when one politician suggests the other doesn't love his country because someone said the nation has a past of which it ought not necessarily be entirely proud. Its in seeing the flaws, the broken dreams and lost lives as counter-measure to what good the country has done that you can see the promise of what we'd like to offer every person within these borders and beyond. It tells us what we can do better. And when we live through a time in which we feel the government has steered wrong, we can imagine that the winds of change will blow and the ship will find its course.

I need to see more of the country. I'd very much like to see its capitols and landmarks. Its parks, and its beaches. See what my fellow Americans are like in places like Boston and Los Angeles. I don't get out enough.

But... Happy B-Day, America. Hopefully we won't accidentally set you on fire with a bottle rocket.


like everything else iconic in history, this didn't really happen, either

Wednesday, July 01, 2009

It's Christmas (Talk) in July! aka: The League Holiday Special

So, of course, part of the problem is that my idea for a Holiday Special was pretty much what Colbert did in 2008. Talented and amazing The League may be, but we strongly suspect that we're not going to outdo Colbert on this thing.

I'm thinking a 10 minute video (anything longer suggests effort), but we'll see. Could be longer or shorter. Might not get around to it at all.

But here's the thing: It's going to be a lot more fun if I can get you guys to participate.

I know that July 1st might seem a spot early to bring this up, but we'll probably start producing this thing as early as October. So that's, really, like 3 or four months away.


...our benchmark for quality

Some rules...

A) This is a family show, Leaguers. I don't mind a few swears, but The KareBear and Judy are going to watch this thing. So, you know...
B) Anything sent in needs to be fairly decent quality. By that I mean, if the camera is laying on its side, or we can't actually hear you, then I'm probably not going to be able to use it. Don't worry, we're going to have issues here, too.
C) It HAS to be about the Holidays in some way. It can be about Christmas, Hannukah, Kwanzaa, etc... We're working with a theme here, Leaguers.


Bowie and Crosby got nothing on my Leaguers

Here's what we're looking for:

1) Volunteers for guest appearances. If you'd like to actually appear in a portion of the video, lemme know. That would require a few hours on some weekend. We may require you to sing and dance. No, seriously.

2) Send in your video. This isn't a call for random people to send me a video. You pretty much MUST QUALIFY AS A LEAGUER (you know who you are. Exceptions granted for Lynda Carter, Christina Hendricks, Shatner or other non-Leaguers of note. In fact, those three are welcome to come over any time.).
I'm not placing any restrictions on what you send in. If you make a jerk of yourself, you make a jerk of yourself.
However... Keep it short. No longer than 1 minute. Unless you're sending in the best video of all time. Then we can negotiate.

3) Original Songs. If you want to send in a song for The League to sing, we're up for that. Or you can sing it yourself. But... it should be about 90 seconds.

4) Poems, stories, etc... I don't really know what I mean by this, but send your stuff in, and we'll see if we can't figure out how to squeeze it in.

So if you're wondering: No. I don't have a script yet. I kind of want to see what we get, to an extent. But I'm starting to get some ideas together, thinking about how to put a song or two together, that sort of thing. And, of course, planning to decorate for Christmas early this year, if need be.

Anyhow, I hope you guys want to participate in some way.

So, let's make it a Jolly Holiday.



The League is looking out for your Holiday Season

Tell 'Em That it's Human Nature

somewhere I have a vinyl record of Michael Jackson reading the story of E.T. This image was included in the packaging.



I really wanted to put this image on our wedding invitation. Did not happen.

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

The Maxx

The Maxx that I cared about in the 1990's was not the soda shop frequented by the "Saved By The Bell" kids.

I had not read Sam Keith's comic when The Maxx debuted on MTV circa 1994. It was part of the Image onslaught of comics that my wallet couldn't handle, and too many of which focused on art over story or substance in an era when Neil Gaiman was writing Sandman, Grant Morrison was writing The Invisibles, Garth Ennis was starting to make some noise in the US, and ideas like "Kid Eternity" were a viable part of the comic landscape (and, I should mention, Marvel had just done the Clone Wars deal and was close to filing for bankruptcy).

And then, between Beastie Boys videos, I saw the ads for The Maxx.



As it happens once in a while, I was a fan of the cartoon before I was a fan of the comic. I enjoy the Hulk movies, but never get too far with the comics. Same for Iron Man. I suppose one could say I was a fan of the Superman movies and cartoons prior to my interest in the comics, so I guess it applies here, to an extent.

It would be fairly far into the episodes of The Maxx that it would become clear to me that The Maxx was never really intended to be about dimension-hopping superheroics and, instead, was much more about somebody's (I'd suggest Sam Keith's) issues with women. If Superman was the man the Clark Kents of the world wished they could be to impress their Lois, then The Maxx was somebody working out their feelings both about who they wished they could be (still oddly grotesque and sort of slow), mixed in equal parts with who they strongly suspected they appeared to be to the world (a badly dressed hobo in a box with violent tendencies).

The series didn't make it as a cartoon on MTV (and I mourn the loss of an MTV that was trying new things all the time, from The Maxx to Aeon Flux). It did run as a fairly successful creator-owned series at Image for about 35 issues, plus spin-off's and tie-ins'.


The Maxx does not care to debate what the definition of what "Isz" is.

I'm not sure a literal reading of The Maxx, no matter how surreal the material and art, is what Keith had in mind. But its also difficult at times to discern exactly what he was trying to do, exactly, other than create an access point to approach certain characters and stories he wanted to work through. Were the "Isz" the ugly truth trying to drag down The Maxx? If the Outback wasn't real, and the "real world" wasn't real, then...

Anyway, it was a beautiful use of the medium as storytelling device, and the art and layout astoundingly handled, with no choice made arbitrarily.

At one point I had a fairly complete Maxx collection, but I believe it disappeared during a purge a while back. It's a fun read, but I decided to just hang on to the trade apperback collections released a few years ago and available at quality comic shops (and online) from DC.

Its been a long, long time since I read much in the way of The Maxx, but MTV has recently brought the entire cartoon series online. The cartoons are exact panels from the comics, with what I'd consider to be good voice acting. It's a bit of a trippy cartoon. But in the 1990's, when I was surprised if a comic character's costume was even the right color, seeing a comic so literally translated out of the comic format was an absolute revelation.

Click here to see the series online.

The series does touch on subject matter that has become a bit verboten in the ensuing years, at least in part because some of Julie's origin specifics became overused in less than well-handled fashion. But it was also an interesting mix of people behaving like people and a cracked out world of superheroes, wild psychic landscapes and flying whales. All fitting within a specific vision.

Keith would go on to do other series, like Zero Girl, Four Women and others, including a Batman comic series or two. I still feel, when I read his independent work, that he's working his way through something.

Years and years ago, a Maxx Christmas ornament was my first eBay purchase (and visitors to League HQ during the Holiday season can find it on the tree). And a Maxx action figure (with Isz) resides on my desk.

It may be about time I re-watched the cartoon and/ or re-read the series.

Monday, June 29, 2009

A few quick items

Editor's note: We're giving over tonight's full column to Leaguer Nathan C. So here's a few tidbits. I invite you to read Nathan's column in its entirety.

Achewood and Jacko

Ray Smuckles on the death of Michael Jackson. This is the column I wish I had written.

also here.

Jon & Kate: Cultural Implications

On Friday, I saw two women, both in their 40's, who had the same haircut as Kate Gosselin of Jon & Kate Plus Eight. It was bound to happen, I suppose. We may become adults, but we still find ourselves imitating the people we look up to. I've been wearing a pant suit since Hillary announced her nomination.

One offender was on campus, most likely retrieving her child from a camp or from Freshman Orientation. The other was at Texadelphia with her husband, whom I wanted to take aside and instruct that, yes... when your wife begins to idolize a TLC star, its okay to run for your life.

I ponder the army of Kate-haired fans at a Barnes & Noble, all lined up for a signing of "Eight Little Faces", and I tremble.

Wagner's Back in Town!

Heather Wagner has finally completed her three year sojourn in Lubbock where she was completing her masters in Speech Therapy. She's now back in Austin and on the job hunt (so if you've got some speech issues and need some help...).

To make matters interesting, Wagner is living with a friend, also named Heather. Other Heather seems like a swell dame.

GI Joe

I may be rethinking this GI Joe movie. Yes, indeed.

Thank you, Hollywood, for knowing I don't care if I'm pandered to.

But I'm still not seeing your movie.

Guest Column: Nathan C has "A Few Words About the Gloved One"

Editor's Note: As I mentioned, Nathan was the first to alert me to Jackson's death. Nathan Cone has, since I met him, unapologetically and (I believe) unironically adored the work of Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5. And, in fact, for no particular reason I can recall, I associate The Jackson 5's "ABC" with Nathan. I assume we grooved to it together sometime in the mid-90's.

He's been so gracious as to share a few words eulogizing The King of Pop, and a few personal memories.


A FEW WORDS ABOUT THE GLOVED ONE
by Nathan Cone

Incidentally, that was always my favorite nickname for Michael Jackson, “The Gloved One.”

The League knows that I have a special place in my heart and in my record collection for great R&B. Michael Jackson, and his brothers in the Jackson 5, provided a slice of heaven to this listener every time I dropped the needle on one of their records. From “I Want You Back” to “Smooth Criminal,” few could match the grooves of MJ.

A lot of folks in the media went on and on about his music, and of course his problems, but I’ve noticed very few commented on his dancing skills (NPR was an exception). I’ve been re-watching a lot of video clips this weekend, and he was an astonishing talent. He was graceful, like Fred Astaire. He was so much more than the Moonwalk and the crotch grab, and I think a lot of people forget that.

Thriller. Amidst the impressive statistic that it’s the best-selling album of all time, I think even more incredible is the fact that seven of the nine songs on the album were hit singles! Wow.

I was as shocked as anyone to hear of Michael Jackson’s passing last Thursday, but not really conflicted about it. I had already gone through the mourning process years ago, right around the time of the Lisa Marie Presley marriage and on-stage kiss, I believe. MJ addressed his weirdness with a self-knowing humor in the video and song “Leave Me Alone,” but by the 1990s, he was just pissed off, and backed away from the public eye. So despite a few musical salvos from the Gloved One, we’ve really been without the Michael we know for 15+ years. He had long since moved from being on top of the world to being a punch line, and that’s no place to be.

I always wished Michael Jackson would call up Quincy Jones. Clearly their collaborations had a kind of magic to them, like Miles Davis & Gil Evans. I can only imagine what would have happened had they decided to work together again.

Finally, although the League, Mrs. League, Bug, and the rest of the Trinity crew can attest that my imitation of the Jackson 5’s “I Want You Back” dance routine was inspired but weak, I was a badass at the “Moonwalker” video game.

Three memories:
1. When “Thriller” premiered on MTV, I remember sitting in front of the TV with my brother Marcus, eating Oreos and watching the video. (And even at 10 years of age, I thought that disclaimer about the occult on the front end was odd.)

2. My friend David Hardisty had one of the “Beat It” red knock-off jackets. I tried it on, knew I looked like a complete dork wearing it, and promptly removed it.

3. While home in Spring during college, David Wilcox and I went to Sound Warehouse one night, and I bought “Off The Wall” on cassette. I think David felt that in the early 1990s, it was a very kitschy, post-grunge thing to do, to drive up and down F.M. 1960 blasting “Rock With You.” But I think secretly he loved the music as much as me.

So long, Gloved One.


Bonus Memory: One of my earliest Jackson memories involves the totally over-the-top video for the Jacksons’ “Can You Feel It.” Dick Clark introduced it on American Bandstand one afternoon, remarking about the incredible visuals. Years later, it’s kind of cheesy, and amazing that the sound effects overpower the music throughout most of the song, but this is a cool video. Dig the way the Jacksons portray themselves as demi-gods. Ha ha!

Sunday, June 28, 2009

The League Obtains: A Cousin

So, Cousin Sue has adopted a fresh faced kid.

After 34 years, The League is no longer the youngest on that side of the family (second cousins Michael and Kathy are younger than me on the Steans-side).

I have to check with Sue before I start naming names and invade privacy of a tween-ager, so bear with me. The kid is not an infant or toddler, and so the rules are a bit different. I need to be careful so that her classmates don't track her down via this blog and all that, so... I need to come up with some sort of pseudonym. And remember a camera next time, but...

I really liked this kid. Sharp and she was happy to chat. She's going to make a fine addition to the clan.

We met up for lunch and then went to Star Trek. Showing remarkable taste, she seemed to like it quite a bit. We're going to get along just fine.

Billy Mays: The Great Beyond's Newest Pitchman

What a strange, strange week.

Television pitchman Billy Mays joins McMahon, Fawcett and Jackson as the fourth celebrity death in a week. Mays was a smaller blip on the cultural radar than any of other three, but was a television fixture for several years.

He was the gentleman with the unmistakable voice and beard who I first recall seeing pitching "Oxi-Clean".



Leaguers, I know this sounds a little weird, but I actually did wind up buying Oxi-Clean, and that stuff works wonders on the many potential stains my pets leave around the house. So if you don't trust Billy Mays, there's your unpaid endorsement from a trusted source.

Mays might have been yet another bizarre fixture of bad-timeslots on TV, but had recently been a part of a show called "Pitchmen" on the Discovery Channel. I've seen an episode or two, and it was interesting to see how the whole process works. And, of course, you got to see Mays as more than just a gadfly intensely hawking products.

At last check, no details had been forthcoming around May's death, except that he had been on a flight that had a rough landing. Mays was quoted an mentioning that he'd hit his head.

Folks might dislike Mays as they associate him with the annoyance that is the infomercial, but as the Oxi-Clean thing worked out for me, and I liked his how on Discovery, I thought he was okay.

So long, Billy. You went too soon.

The League Talks Comics - Batwoman, GL and Superman

Editor's Note: Leaguers, I'm going to go back to occasionally talking comics around here. Feel free to ignore these posts, friends and family who don't care!

I'm also going to mostly focus on suggestions for stuff I liked. It'll save us all a lot of time.


Detective Comics #854
Written by Greg Rucka; Art by JH Williams and Cully Hamner; Cover by JH Williams : Variant Cover by JG Jones

We're on issue #854 of Detective Comics, where Batman made his first appearance in 1939ish in issue #29. So, this is the first issue in quite sometime given over to someone other than Batman, or people standing around talking about/ thinking about Batman.

Instead, after 3 years of getting our chain yanked by DC with its sporadic appearances of the "all new" Batwoman (That's Batwoman, not Batgirl), DC finally committed to the character and gave her a chance to make it on her own. Apparently DC is also trying to make amends with novelist/ comic scribe Greg Rucka, with whom it seems things got crosswise during the "52" event of 06' - 07', by giving him "Detective" and then, just to be extra nice, assigning artist JH Williams III (of Batman and Promethea fame) to the storyline.


With karate she'll kick your ass, from here, to right over there...

Longtime readers will know I'm a fan of Rucka's work on Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, OMAC, and I spent a lot of time in Costa Rica reading his "Queen & Country" comics. Rucka does fetishize a certain type of female character, as evidenced by his similar treatment of Renee Montoya from Gotham Central/ The Question, Queen and Country and now Batwoman. Highly competent, jaded, and a personal life in shambles. And maybe he needs to shake that off a bit, which he's forced to do when he's handling characters he didn't manage from scratch (and which he handles quite well).

There's nothing wrong with the narrative here, and, in fact, Rucka does an amazing job of setting the stage for who Kathy Kane is and where we're headed. But Detective Comics just jumped page count and increased its price by 25% with a Question back-up feature by Rucka, that will probably remind readers a bit too much of how similar the two characters actually are.

I'm counting on the back-up feature intersecting with the main feature at some point. We'll see. But both characters have been tied up with Rucka's ongoing "Religion of Crime" storylines at different times.

I'd be remiss in discussing the new Batwoman as character if I didn't point out, like everyone else has, that she is part of DC's efforts at representing the world "as is", in that Kathy Kane has been established as a lesbian. It's not an overarching part of the plot, but its not hard to see that DC was trying to spread its wings a bit with the character intended to be part of its mainstream offerings. Which, I just realized, means that Detective Comics #854 features not one, but two gay heroes.

The art: Is phenomenal. I really don't know what else to say about JH Williams, other than that the man is one of the most wickedly talented people working in the comics business. His style is vastly different from, say, Frank Quitely, but I feel he's in the same category, and it'd be nice if he were a bit better recognized/ had greater influence on the comic art community. I suggest going here and then clicking "view preview" to see his stuff.

Green Lantern #42
Written by Geoff Johns: Art and Cover by Philip Tan and Jonathan Glapion; Variant Cover by Rodolfo Migliari

This is more an endorsement of Geoff Johns and Peter Tomasi's work on Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps, two books I enjoy immensely. Johns and Tomasi have both been using the serial and ongoing nature of the books to lead to an event in "Blackest Night", which is hitting at the end of the summer. (And if you're reading GL but not GLC, you are crazy. Seriously.)

Johns and Tomasi have managed to greatly expand the conceits of the GL books of decades past, and have introduced a spectrum of colors and their varying allegiances, roles, etc... And its been a fascinating read.

The last few issues of GL have focused upon the Guardians' attempts to negotiate with Larfleeze, a being who seized the Orange Lantern (think Gollum, but with the power of a thousand GL's) millions of years ago.



As a single issue, it would be incredibly difficult to walk into GL #42, so The League recommends picking up with the Sinestro Corps stuff in trade paperback.

Every once in a while when you're reading a comic, it just clicks, and it becomes abundantly clear that the comic you're reading is going to be remembered and become essential reading for decades. It may eventually spawn movies, etc... And, most certainly, that's the case right now with Green Lantern, provided the whole ending for Blackest Night doesn't crater.

Superman #689

Written by James Robinson; Art by Renato Guedes and José Wilson Magalhães; Cover by Andrew Robinson

Like Batman disappearing from the pages of Detective, Superman hasn't actually appeared in "Superman" for the past few months as the "World of Krypton" mega-story has taken over the Superman wing of the DCU. Clark Kent/ Kal-El is off planet at the moment (a move I confess to thinking was nuts when I first heard it), and has left Metropolis in the hands of a fellow alien, Mon-El. Meanwhile, Action Comics is now featuring an all-new Flamebird and Nightwing, a Kandorian super-team hunting down Phantom Zone criminals.

Mon-El has appeared in the Superman-related comics since the early 1960's, first in Superboy, and then in the Legion of Super-Heroes. From the planet Daxam (and actually named Lar Gand, but given a Kryptonian name by a young Superboy) Mon-El has similar abilities to a Kryptonian. However, unlike Kryptonians, Daxamites are affected by the simple element of lead the way Superman might be affected by Kryptonite. In today's continuity, he was found by a young Clark Kent who was forced to place him into the Phantom Zone to save his life.

Freed from the Zone and given a temporary cure, he's taken Superman's place in protecting not just Metropolis, but, as this issue explores, Earth. Its a great story, showing how this very human alien relates to the planet and is trying to make the most of his time.



I'm not as enamored by Robinson's writing as some, and some scenes, such as The Guardian's defense of Mon-El to Morgan Edge feel simply rushed. Like Robinson had an item he felt he wanted to check off his list of narrative moments, but didn't quite know how to frame it, and so a fairly simple speech cleared up an entire storyline. It seemed almost quaint in this era of televised punditry. It also felt oddly like a call back to Superman's defense of Krypto circa issue 680.

But the issue is an overall enjoyable read, and a great beat in this ever-expanding storyline of World of Krypton, as it runs through the Superman titles.

Sure, its odd that DC has decided that Clark Kent himself isn't the star of his self-titled comic at the moment, but I'm enjoying the feeling of a broad, epic vision for the Superman comics at this moment. Superman's displacement doesn't feel artificial as it did in "Superman: Exile", and I feel that Robinson's stewardship on the title is sound.

Plus, I like the artwork.


That's it for the moment. I doubt this will be a weekly thing, but doing some comic-related writing felt like a good idea today.

Farrah Fawcett - Now chatting it up with Charlie in a better place

The passing of Farrah Fawcett would have been the big headline had the sudden death of Michael Jackson not occurred within hours.

I didn't follow Fawcett's career, in particular. I was quite young during the Charlie's Angel's era, and when "The Burning Bed" aired, I was at an age where that probably wasn't going to be something I was watching.

When I think of Fawcett, literally every time, this is the image that comes to mind:


I don't know what the current status is, but at one point, this was (by far) the best selling poster, ever.

Even many Central Texans don't know that Fawcett is a Longhorn. She's actually from Corpus Cristi, and attended UT circa 1968. The crazy bit is that, according to Wikipedia, she lived in Jester. Who knew?

She was in a large number of film and television projects, and somehow managed to be married to Lee Majors at one point, which is awesome (and had such an impact, I heard one eulogy incorrectly identify her as Farrah Fawcett-Majors).

Of course Fawcett had most recently been in the public eye with her fight against cancer.

Interestingly, Fawcett's 1970's style had become re-adopted by today's youth, whether they knew the source of the look or not. But a quick Google Image search is kind of interesting.


In this image, Fawcett has just run out her door in time to see the ice cream truck is now too far down the street to catch

So long, Farrah. You'll be missed.