All snow and no play...

So, I had all kinds of ideas of things I wanted to write about this week, since I'm trying to make good my goal of keeping this blog active. But then, the snow came. And came. And came some more. And so, having been holed up in the same apartment since Friday, my girlfriend's idea to watch The Shining over the weekend didn't seem so great.



For the more disciplined folks, it's a great chance to be productive. For the rest of us, well, it's a chance to meet those we wouldn't otherwise.

You Bayonet-cha

When I first saw the ads for the Bayonetta game, I didn't think much of it. Another game featuring a kick-ass babe who shoots guns in skintight leather, uh huh. But the more I saw the ads, the more something nagged at me. There was just... something... about the character. Something naggingly familiar, but at the back of my head...

But what could it be? A brunette woman with glasses and a predilection for shooting guns. Where could I have possibly heard of that before?

Reboot Camp

Not the new Spider Man movie. Or is it...?

It’s been announced last week that the Spider Man movies are getting a reboot. With the announcement of (500) Days of Summer director Marc Webb as the man behind the camera, it’s obvious that Sony is looking to seriously get away from Sam Raimi’s trilogy.

Yes, the costume taught him how to play piano.

The first question this brings to mind is: does the series really need a reboot already? Sure, Spider-Man 3 was kind of a mess, but the first two films still hold up. Also, with the new film planned for 2012, it’ll only have been 10 years since the first film, a short enough time for it still to be in filmgoers’ memories.

Then again, the quick reboot has been tried already – twice so far. Although they didn’t do much for the respective franchises, the films at least gave us a Hulk with out daddy issues and a Punisher without John Travolta.

Sees no problem with Thomas Jane's Punisher

For those of us who’ve grown up on comics (especially DC comics), the idea of the reboot is nothing new. Whether it was multiple Crises, or the Ultimate line, or events such as One More Day, we’re used to seeing the continuity we’ve spent years (or even decades) with get re-written in the space of a few months. DC’s even keeping the tradition alive with their upcoming Batman and Superman OGNs, completely bypassing the storylines of the monthlies. For superhero fans, reboots are as familiar as tights.

Remember the good old days?

But what about the general populace? Are they as keen on the idea of starting over every few years? Do they have the feeling of déjà vu when they see the same storyline played out over and over again, albeit with certain surface changes? Or do they care, as long as the story and action are good?

It could just be like with remakes, which Hollywood can’t seem to make enough of – the film has just enough newness to be enjoyable, but is familiar enough to justify dropping 10+ dollars on. And let’s face it, who wants to see a movie where they need 15 minutes of exposition to figure out what’s going on.

And on that note, it seems Brian Singer’s signed on to do an X-Men: First Class movie. Anything to make us forget about X-Men 3.

It never gets old... really.

The Amazing Obama Man

There’s been a lot of discussion of President Obama’s performance lately, what with the economy and war and all, and it’s brought out some thoughts I’ve had floating around for quite a while now.



It’s not saying anything new to say that even a year and a half ago one could tell there was something different about the then-senator from Illinois. Hell, lots of people have written about it, most probably better than I ever could. But what really struck me, especially around this time last year, was the way the comic people jumped all over Obama.

Even before he was elected, you had successful comic characters (and by extension, one would think their creators) making no bones about their chosen candidate:



When he did get elected, it was unprecedented. Sure,other presidents had appeared in comics before, but none like this. In terms of sheer volume and scope, Obama (or at least his image) was blazing all kinds of new trails.











What’s really interesting is seeing how the interpretations developed over time. While most comics were content to simply involve the president in a storyline or two, Devil’s Due took it a step further



…and then Antarctic Press took it even further than that:



Even his detractors, it seemed, couldn’t help but fall back on comic book imagery:



Taking all of this in, it’s easy to see that Obama isn’t just the president, he’s a full-blown Pop Culture Phenomenon. I know, a little late to the game with that one, huh? But seeing it laid out like this raises certain questions about not just the president, but his fans as well.

There are certain parallels one can draw between President Obama and Tiger Woods – and most are probably too obvious to even point out. But the main similarity (for the sake of this discussion) is the way with each that the Image overlaps with the Actual Human Being.



With his recent domestic troubles and subsequently dodgy behavior, it seems that Tiger Woods’ biggest problem of late is that his dramatically adult personal life is clashing with his image as the clean, driven, “aw shucks” kind of guy who was as charming as he was good at golf. (Think back to that Dave Chapelle sketch of Tiger Woods awkwardly declaring, “I’ve always wanted to say this – fer shizzle!”) With people learning that off the field Woods is just like lots of other celebrities – all too fallible – his popularity and position in the public’s good graces is in question.

We’re seeing some hints of this with Obama in the political field as well. With the troop escalation in Afghanistan, the total mess the health care debate has become, the continued corporate bonuses, etc., a lot of people on the political left are starting to feel disillusioned with Obama. Put simply, they’re finding the man in the office isn’t the same guy who was in that Spider-Man issue.



One thing America likes to do to its celebrities is, after having built them up, to tear them down. Tom Cruise certainly got a lot more press after jumping on Oprah’s couch than he did before that. So what happens when the celebrity happens to be the man in charge of running the country? What happens when his comic stops selling? What happens when the Symbol of Hope turns out to be just another guy in a suit doing a job?

What if Clark Kent really isn’t Superman?



Or conversely, will the Idea of Barack Obama overshadow the man to the point where all we have left is the image, devoid of any but the most basic associations? Will Sheperd Fairey’s famed “Hope” poster simply become the newest perennial t-shirt design?




(Please note, I’m not trying to make any overt political statements, but more examining the whole person/persona issue when played out in four colors.)

Dammit, Jim!

Apparently skater shoe makers Airwalk have a Star Trek-inspired line of hi-tops.



The only thing is, what self-respecting Trekkie is going to want to wear the red ones?

True Tales of Geekery

(Somewhat appropriate graphic.)

Back in an earlier, simpler time – 2001 – I interned at a locally-based major advertising company (I was doing copy editing, of course). One of the company’s largest clients was Chevrolet, who at the time was working on bringing a new truck/SUV-type vehicle to market.

One thing I never thought about until then was how new vehicles are named. Sure, occasionally the odd name comes out (what the hell is a "Yaris," anyway?) but for the most part the name is just there, just one more part of the car. As it turns out, there are all kinds of ways cars get their names. Often, the engineers or someone at the company will have the name in mind with the concept, and other times the company will just go with whatever the model designation happens to be (your F150, perhaps). And sometimes, someone creative gets thrown in the mix.

(Mildly appropriate graphic.)

It really pains me to admit that I can’t remember his name, but the guy writing the ads for this new Chevy vehicle also happened to be an avid comic reader – the cubicle filled with Spawn toys being an obvious indicator. When he was given the project, this overly-large bastard merging of pickup truck and SUV simply had its project number as a name. The writer knew that X57J4 or whatever it was just wasn’t going to grab anyone. So he went to the place where he knew he’d find powerful, descriptive names, the kinds that jump out at you and pull you in, that lodge themselves in the pop culture consciousness and stay there. That is to say, he looked in his comics. Marvel comics, to be precise.

And there he found his answer. So now you know, whenever you see that ugly beast of a vehicle called the Avalanche driving down the road, you know that it is indeed named after a third-tier member of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Which in its own way is almost poetically appropriate.

(Completely appropriate graphics.)

As to how the Aztek got its name, well, that’s a tale for another day… preferably to be told by someone who actually knows it.

Tricks 'n' Treats

With Halloween upon us, it seemed a good time to share some spooky goodies to make this - or any - season a little more creepy and fun...



The Strange Adventures of H.P. Lovecraft (Image)
This series captures the essence of the Lovecraft stories well: the
protagonists in Lovecraft’s stories were rarely Everymen, but more
often singular personalities who were haunted by some demon or Elder
God, but more often by their own obsessions. H.P. is presented here as
a struggling writer, so trapped by his own insecurities and familial
dysfunctions that he can’t even pursue the girl of his dreams (a
flapper librarian, no less – yowza!). Writer Mac Carter does a great
job of capturing the energy and vibe of a Lovecraft story while
keeping his own voice, and Tony Salmons’ art fully conveys the
frenetic creepiness of the tale. Unfortunately, the final issue has
yet to materialize, but for now it’s worth tracking down the first
three.



Paranormal Activity
By now you’ve probably heard lots about this
little-indie-film-turned-box-office-smash, but the question remains,
is it scary? Let me tell you something, my friend, it is indeed. By
aiming low – focusing on the actors’ reactions and keeping the scare
level at a slow boil – this film reminds us that, still, the scariest
things are the ones we don’t see. You’ll never look at a hall light
turning on the same way again. (Note: The trailers on the film's web site are far better than the one on Youtube, but really, you'll get way more just going in fresh. At least, that worked for me.)



Drag Me to Hell
A Sam Raimi horror movie about a woman who receives a gypsy curse that
threatens to – you guessed it – drag her to hell. It’s been 22 years
since Raimi and crew made Evil Dead II, and even after all the time
and big budget films Sam proves he never strayed far from his
(Michigan) slapstick horror roots.



The Misfits – “Scream” video
Yeah, it’s old, but still worth revisiting. Bassist Jerry Only revived
the Misfits in the mid-‘90s without Glenn Danzig, to very mixed
lineups and results. But perhaps signifying the peak of the “Misfits
pt.2” was the video for their song “Scream” (from the Famous Monsters
album). Directed by none other than George Romero (in exchange for
their appearance in Romero’s film Bruiser), it distills the zombie
movie to its essence in just under three minutes, and still delivers.

And of course...


Candy!!!