If this keeps up, I won't need a girlfriend! Hot on the heels of hearing we are about to be treated to Scream 4 comes Sam Raimi's announcement that his debut movie, the seminal horror flick, Evil Dead, will be re-released in theaters next year! Select Landmark theaters throughout the United States will screen Evil Dead as a midnight showing, along with Mayfair Cinemas in Canada. More theaters will be announced in 2010.
Evil Dead remains one of the most visceral, truly horrifying films ever made. While filmed on a shoestring budget, Raimi's masterful direction and the unequaled creativity involved in the special effects make Evil Dead a joy to watch. I can't begin to imagine how nice it looks on a big screen (though I aim to find out, no matter how far I have to drive!).
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
A rambling melange of pop-culture.
Saturday, November 07, 2009
Friday, November 06, 2009
Cartoon Network Goes Live
Cartoon Network inked their first two, scripted, live-action series. Tower Prep and Unnatural History begin production in January. Cartoon Network ordered the first 13 episodes of each; if the series do well, the network may pick-up "the Back Nine" (nine more episodes for a full season of 22 episodes). Both shows were mentioned back in March, when CN announced its programming was expanding to include live-action shows and movies.
Many lament the change, including several animators.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
Many lament the change, including several animators.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
Late-Night Posting
My new computer arrives today. I'll still be on dial-up for another 10 business days or so, but at least I won't be fighting unresponsive scripts and crap. It's Windows 7 but it has 4GB RAM, so that thing should FLY! I've never had a computer with more than 1GB RAM. I'm super-excited, but I stayed up until nearly 6:30a, getting things ready and I'm nowhere near done.
I'm going to try hard to crash for a few; I'm like the living dead, here. I'll be back this afternoon and I'll either post into the night or drop a line to let you know what's up. Plenty of stuff to get to, but a lot to do before I drop everything and get elbow-deep in Windows 7, drivers, network cables, and that kind of stuff.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
I'm going to try hard to crash for a few; I'm like the living dead, here. I'll be back this afternoon and I'll either post into the night or drop a line to let you know what's up. Plenty of stuff to get to, but a lot to do before I drop everything and get elbow-deep in Windows 7, drivers, network cables, and that kind of stuff.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
Thursday, November 05, 2009
Colbert, Fans to Sponsor 2010 Olympic Speedskating Team
Following the collapse of DSB Bank, U.S. Speedskating needed a new financial backer. Talk show host and mock newsman, Stephen Colbert, announced Monday that he and his fans, the "Colbert Nation," would back the team at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, just three months away.
Following the announcement, Stephen Colbert signed a document indicating the Colbert Nation was the new U.S. Speedskating backer. A picture of a speedskater wearing a "Colbert Nation" patch then appeared as the audience cheered.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
Following the announcement, Stephen Colbert signed a document indicating the Colbert Nation was the new U.S. Speedskating backer. A picture of a speedskater wearing a "Colbert Nation" patch then appeared as the audience cheered.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
Jim Lee's Return Makes Image United!
Image founder and WILDC.A.Ts creator, Jim Lee, provides all-new cover for November's IMAGE UNITED #1!4 November 2009 (Berkeley, CA) - Since IMAGE UNITED's announcement, fans have clamored for the one missing Image Comics founder, Jim Lee, to take part in the crossover event. Earlier today, Image and Newsarama revealed Lee will definitely take part with an all-new cover featuring the entire pantheon of Image superheroes at the hands of the resurrected Al Simmons.
"Things just got real," IMAGE UNITED writer, Robert Kirkman, said. "Having all seven founders truly united propels the crossover to a whole new level. That's a commonly used phrase, but it's definitely the case here. This is exactly the moment fans have been hoping for and I'm very happy to say Jim delivered. That said, if you think this is cool, just wait for what happens next!"
IMAGE UNITED is a six-part crossover encompassing the entire Image superhero universe and features each Image founder illustrating his own characters. Since its announcement, the crossover has set headlines with New York Times, USAToday, and other massive media outlets for its once-in-a-lifetime approach to the superhero crossover. Lee's cover is available for order in addition to those by fellow founders Erik Larsen, Rob Liefeld, Jim Valentino, Whilce Portacio, Marc Silvestri, and Todd McFarlane.
IMAGE UNITED #1, a full-color, 32-page comic book for $3.99, will be in stores November 25th, 2009.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
Wednesday, November 04, 2009
V - A Brief Review
ABC's remake of the 1980's sci-fi classic, V, dominated the coveted young adult demographic last night, becoming the fall's biggest new series premiere amongst the 18 to 30-somethings (or whatever it is). But was it any good?
The original V mini-series was a pop-cultural touchstone for my generation; some 65 million viewers watched it. It was the biggest thing of its time, with good reason: V rocked! It was an excellent show - well-written, clever (if heavy-handed), and a whole lot of fun. There will never be another V for all sorts of reasons, but people my age can attest to just how massive an event the original was. Just for comparison, V won-over the adolescent and young adult set last night, but drew only 13.9 million.
V was one of those childhood obsessions which I feared seeing as an adult; I didn't know if it would stand-up or not and I didn't want the reality to ruin my memories. However, I caught the original mini-series on the Action! Channel about five years ago and was not just pleasantly surprised, I was blown-away (once again)! V remains a very entertaining piece of work to this day.
For similar reasons, I worried about the new incarnation, but I wasn't about to miss it. Once the reviews started coming in, I was cautiously optimistic - and I must admit, pleasantly surprised! I think I could have been blown-away by a two-hour premiere, but I also think ABC was, like me, reservedly optimistic. Thankfully, last night's ratings ensure V a fighting chance... something for which ABC is not well-known. (They can drop that awful, obtuse Flash Forward at any time - they could have canceled that the first night!) But is V any good?
Yes. Yes, V was actually very good. I was shocked by how much exposition they got into a one-hour primetime slot, not to mention the skill with which they did it. A two-hour premiere actually wasn't necessary. Possibly the best thing about V though is that it pulls no punches. The first mini-series event was pretty raw and violent; it embraced its sci-fi and horror elements instead of trying to hide them in the background or off-screen. In fact, that was its claim to fame! V knew it was an horrific sci-fi thriller and just walked up and did it.
The sequel mini-series was abysmal, though. That was so completely "made-for-TV" it was laughable. Gone was the blood, the horror, even the eating of rats! Instead, we got the standard space opera - it was so obviously toned-down and fashioned to appeal to a mass audience that, like all such work, it appealed to no one. I understand there was a series as well, and barely recall something to that effect, but it was nearly 10 years after the 1983 epic (or seemed to be) and so far past the franchise's peak that I missed it, and don't recall anyone ever watching it.
ABC's V cleverly laid bare the plot by carrying us into the world of the underground resistance, which stands in stark contrast to the slick, cunning, and duplicitous alien facade above. Instead of wasting three hours or more, promising us greater things to come (Eastwick, Heroes), V explodes across the screen before the first commercial break! There were times I questioned how well the show would have played-out, were I not familiar with the first mini-series - it moves that fast - but I can't evaluate this after only one viewing. Still, the show managed to present the entirety of the premise in that one hour premiere without title cards or information dumps. Kudos to them for that.
The SFX were also better than I expected. Viewers who did not experience the phenomenon the first time around (few of them were even born!) should get a kick out of the laser guns the Visitors use, assuming they are part of the new milieu and are done as well as they were before; in 1983, they were one of the most talked-about elements of the program.
I want to direct your attention to the bats on the underside of the mothership early in the program. If this was a nod to Metrodome, thanks, new V people; I'm watching. I also want to apologize to V's creator, with whom I've talked on more than one occasion. I still support your desire to bring the story to the big screen, but I told you before: this may well be the best way to make that happen! I also know the authoress who penned the novels, Ann Crispin... but I have nothing to say to, nor about, her - nothing good, nothing bad, nothing at all; and this statement is not a dig, nor does it mean anything more than what it states.
Fans of V should check out Dark Conspiracy @ The Weirding. Because V is one of the works upon which the entire game (system and setting) was based. And no one does Dark Conspiracy better than us. Nobody does tabletop RPG better than The Weirding, period.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
The original V mini-series was a pop-cultural touchstone for my generation; some 65 million viewers watched it. It was the biggest thing of its time, with good reason: V rocked! It was an excellent show - well-written, clever (if heavy-handed), and a whole lot of fun. There will never be another V for all sorts of reasons, but people my age can attest to just how massive an event the original was. Just for comparison, V won-over the adolescent and young adult set last night, but drew only 13.9 million.
V was one of those childhood obsessions which I feared seeing as an adult; I didn't know if it would stand-up or not and I didn't want the reality to ruin my memories. However, I caught the original mini-series on the Action! Channel about five years ago and was not just pleasantly surprised, I was blown-away (once again)! V remains a very entertaining piece of work to this day.
For similar reasons, I worried about the new incarnation, but I wasn't about to miss it. Once the reviews started coming in, I was cautiously optimistic - and I must admit, pleasantly surprised! I think I could have been blown-away by a two-hour premiere, but I also think ABC was, like me, reservedly optimistic. Thankfully, last night's ratings ensure V a fighting chance... something for which ABC is not well-known. (They can drop that awful, obtuse Flash Forward at any time - they could have canceled that the first night!) But is V any good?
Yes. Yes, V was actually very good. I was shocked by how much exposition they got into a one-hour primetime slot, not to mention the skill with which they did it. A two-hour premiere actually wasn't necessary. Possibly the best thing about V though is that it pulls no punches. The first mini-series event was pretty raw and violent; it embraced its sci-fi and horror elements instead of trying to hide them in the background or off-screen. In fact, that was its claim to fame! V knew it was an horrific sci-fi thriller and just walked up and did it.
The sequel mini-series was abysmal, though. That was so completely "made-for-TV" it was laughable. Gone was the blood, the horror, even the eating of rats! Instead, we got the standard space opera - it was so obviously toned-down and fashioned to appeal to a mass audience that, like all such work, it appealed to no one. I understand there was a series as well, and barely recall something to that effect, but it was nearly 10 years after the 1983 epic (or seemed to be) and so far past the franchise's peak that I missed it, and don't recall anyone ever watching it.
ABC's V cleverly laid bare the plot by carrying us into the world of the underground resistance, which stands in stark contrast to the slick, cunning, and duplicitous alien facade above. Instead of wasting three hours or more, promising us greater things to come (Eastwick, Heroes), V explodes across the screen before the first commercial break! There were times I questioned how well the show would have played-out, were I not familiar with the first mini-series - it moves that fast - but I can't evaluate this after only one viewing. Still, the show managed to present the entirety of the premise in that one hour premiere without title cards or information dumps. Kudos to them for that.
The SFX were also better than I expected. Viewers who did not experience the phenomenon the first time around (few of them were even born!) should get a kick out of the laser guns the Visitors use, assuming they are part of the new milieu and are done as well as they were before; in 1983, they were one of the most talked-about elements of the program.
I want to direct your attention to the bats on the underside of the mothership early in the program. If this was a nod to Metrodome, thanks, new V people; I'm watching. I also want to apologize to V's creator, with whom I've talked on more than one occasion. I still support your desire to bring the story to the big screen, but I told you before: this may well be the best way to make that happen! I also know the authoress who penned the novels, Ann Crispin... but I have nothing to say to, nor about, her - nothing good, nothing bad, nothing at all; and this statement is not a dig, nor does it mean anything more than what it states.
Fans of V should check out Dark Conspiracy @ The Weirding. Because V is one of the works upon which the entire game (system and setting) was based. And no one does Dark Conspiracy better than us. Nobody does tabletop RPG better than The Weirding, period.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
S.E. Hinton Comes to Bluewater
Bluewater Productions proudly announces an exciting new partnership with bestselling author S.E. ,Hinton. The Washington-based comic book company has contracted to do various titles with Hinton, the first being her popular young adult novel, Taming of the Star Runner. Bluewater’s new franchise will also include her children's book, The Puppy Sister, and an exclusive new young adult title that Hinton will create specifically for the publisher.S.E. Hinton was, and still is, one of the most popular and well known writers of YA fiction. Hinton is the author of the young adult novels The Outsiders, Tex, Rumble Fish, That was Then, This is Now, and Taming of the Star Runner - all which were chosen as Best Books for the Young Adults by the American Library Association. Her novels changed the way people look at young adult literature.
Taming of the Star Runner is the story of Travis - the epitome of cool, even when he's in trouble. But when he's sent to stay with his uncle on a ranch in the country, he finds that his schoolmates don't like his tough city ways. He does find friendship of a sort with Casey, who runs a riding school at the ranch. She's the bravest person Travis has ever met, and crazy enough to try to tame the Star Runner - her beautiful, dangerous horse who's always on edge, about to explode. It's clear to Travis that he and the Star Runner are two of a kind, creatures not meant to be tamed.
"I grew up reading S.E. Hinton’s books, so to bring these to a graphic novel format is a dream come true for me," said publisher Darren G. Davis. "The best part is getting to work with Hinton one-on-one. We have talked about the new title, which is along the lines of her iconic work, The Outsiders."Taming of the Star Runner is scheduled for a Spring 2010 release. Puppy Sister, which will be an all-ages graphic novel, and the new, untitled young adult series are scheduled for Summer 2010. The creative teams on the books will be Don Smith, CW Cooke, Guilherme Rafid, & Yasir Fajardo.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
Axel Medellin Wins 50-Girls-50 Talent Search
3 November 2009 (Berkeley, CA) - For the past several months, LIBERTY MEADOWS creator Frank Cho and THE 'NAM writer Doug Murray have searched for the artist to illustrate their all new miniseries, 50 GIRLS 50. Today, they're proud to announce the search is over with winner, Axel Medellin!"The number and quality of the submissions really blew me away. I mean, I knew there were a lot of talented comic artists out there, but I hadn’t expected so many to try this out," Murray said. "Judging was very difficult. We had to grade the entries on multiple counts: the fidelity to the model sheets produced by Frank, the story-telling displayed, the quality of the layouts—all of these factors came into play. We managed to pick the final four artists, but choosing a winner out of the four was extremely difficult since each artist had what we were looking for in terms of quality and clear storytelling skills. Frank and I went back and forth to the very last minute on who the winner should be, with Axel beating out the competition."
Axel Medellin will be illustrating next year's 50-GIRLS-50 based off a story conceived and co-written by Cho and Murray. In addition, he will be working alongside Cho, as he works off the NEW ULTIMATES illustrator's character and world designs. Cho will provide covers for every issue.
Cho added, "Thank you all for the time and effort you put into this. Also for the simple humanity and kindness you showed each other within the various threads of the 50-GIRLS-50 blog. I was as impressed by that as I was by the artistry of your entries."
50-GIRLS-50, a full-color 32-page comic book for $2.99, will be released in early 2010.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
Tuesday, November 03, 2009
David Tennant is Not Your Lawyer
NBC greenlighted the legal dramedy, Rex is Not Your Lawyer, two years ago, but it floundered on a shelf for lack of a star. Then along came a Doctor who nailed the part:
David Tennant, best known as the title character in an obscure sci-fi show from England (Doctor Who), will play the title character, Rex, in NBC's Rex is Not Your Lawyer. The procedural concerns a lawyer who begins having panic attacks and starts coaching would-be clients to represent themselves instead.
Tennant's Doctor Who has been hailed as possibly the best iteration of the Time Lord in the show's near 50-year history. Interestingly, fellow Englishman, Hugh Laurie, was cast as the lead in an obscure American show called House - in which he plays a doctor!
Coincidence? We'll let you decide.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
David Tennant, best known as the title character in an obscure sci-fi show from England (Doctor Who), will play the title character, Rex, in NBC's Rex is Not Your Lawyer. The procedural concerns a lawyer who begins having panic attacks and starts coaching would-be clients to represent themselves instead.
Tennant's Doctor Who has been hailed as possibly the best iteration of the Time Lord in the show's near 50-year history. Interestingly, fellow Englishman, Hugh Laurie, was cast as the lead in an obscure American show called House - in which he plays a doctor!
Coincidence? We'll let you decide.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
McFarlane, Liefeld: Spawn #196
2 November 2009 (Berkeley, CA) - For the past year, SPAWN: ENDGAME has riveted readers with its game-changing storyline featuring the death of Al Simmons and Todd McFarlane's return to illustrating his seminal creation. In November's SPAWN #196, ENDGAME concludes with a bang as McFarlane shares art duties with fellow Image Comics founder, Rob Liefeld."I was looking for good artistic help, and remembered inking over Rob on his New Mutants covers back in the Marvel days, and most recently a little bit of IMAGE UNITED," McFarlane said. "I thought it would be a fun experiment to see what Capullo layouts, Liefeld pencils, and my inks looked like together on a handful of pages."
In the conclusion of SPAWN: ENDGAME, reporter Marc Rosen connects the miracle patient stories to the new SPAWN, Jim Downing, as detectives Sam, Twitch, and Rowand discover the association between Downing's awakening, Bill Winston’s suicide, and the Nortego crime syndicate.
SPAWN #196 (JUL090355), a 32-page, full-color comic book for $2.95, will be in stores November 25th, 2009.
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
Monday, November 02, 2009
Marvel Comics Shipping 11-04-09
Nearing the end of another year, True Believers, and looking toward another big crossover arc - "The Siege." Here's your weekly Rundown of Marvel Comics shipping this Wednesday, November 4th, 2009:
Comics On-Sale:
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #610
ASSAULT ON NEW OLYMPUS PROLOGUE
ASTONISHING X-MEN #32
ASTONISHING X-MEN #32 SHS VARIANT
BLACK WIDOW: DEADLY ORIGIN #1
BLACK WIDOW: DEADLY ORIGIN #1 LAND VARIANT
BLACK WIDOW: DEADLY ORIGIN #1 RANEY VARIANT
CAPTAIN AMERICA: REBORN #4 WRAPAROUND COVER
CAPTAIN AMERICA: REBORN #4 CASSADAY VARIANT
CAPTAIN AMERICA: REBORN #4 KUBERT VARIANT
DARK AVENGERS #9 2ND PRINTING VARIANT
DEADPOOL TEAM-UP #899
DEATHLOK #1
DEATHLOK #1 BUCKLER VARIANT
DOCTOR VOODOO: AVENGER OF THE SUPERNATURAL #2
GHOST RIDERS: HEAVEN'S ON FIRE #4
HOUSE OF M: MASTERS OF EVIL #4
IMMORTAL WEAPONS #4
IRON MAN & THE ARMOR WARS #4
MARVEL ZOMBIES RETURN #3 2ND PRINTING VARIANT
MARVEL ZOMBIES: EVIL EVOLUTION
NOVA #31
OFFICIAL INDEX TO THE MARVEL UNIVERSE #11
PSYLOCKE #1
STARR THE SLAYER #3
STRANGE TALES #3
THE MARVELOUS LAND OF OZ #1
THE MARVELOUS LAND OF OZ #1 MCGUINNESS VARIANT
THE MARVELOUS LAND OF OZ #1 SHANOWER VARIANT
THE TORCH #3
ULTIMATE COMICS AVENGERS #2 2ND PRINTING VARIANT
ULTIMATE COMICS SPIDER-MAN #4
X-MEN ORIGINS: ICEMAN
X-MEN VS. AGENTS OF ATLAS #2
X-MEN VS. AGENTS OF ATLAS #2 RAMOS VARIANT
Collections On-Sale:
CRIMINAL: THE DELUXE EDITION HC
EXILES: POINT OF NO RETURN TPB
FANTASTIC FOUR VISIONARIES: WALTER SIMONSON VOL. 3 TPB
GHOST RIDER: DANNY KETCH CLASSIC VOL. 1 TPB
MARVEL ZOMBIES 3 TPB
NOVA VOL. 5: WAR OF KINGS TPB
TERROR, INC.: APOCALYPSE SOON TPB
TIMESTORM 2009/2099 HC
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
Comics On-Sale:
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #610ASSAULT ON NEW OLYMPUS PROLOGUE
ASTONISHING X-MEN #32
ASTONISHING X-MEN #32 SHS VARIANT
BLACK WIDOW: DEADLY ORIGIN #1
BLACK WIDOW: DEADLY ORIGIN #1 LAND VARIANT
BLACK WIDOW: DEADLY ORIGIN #1 RANEY VARIANT
CAPTAIN AMERICA: REBORN #4 WRAPAROUND COVER
CAPTAIN AMERICA: REBORN #4 CASSADAY VARIANT
CAPTAIN AMERICA: REBORN #4 KUBERT VARIANT
DARK AVENGERS #9 2ND PRINTING VARIANT
DEADPOOL TEAM-UP #899
DEATHLOK #1
DEATHLOK #1 BUCKLER VARIANT
DOCTOR VOODOO: AVENGER OF THE SUPERNATURAL #2
GHOST RIDERS: HEAVEN'S ON FIRE #4
HOUSE OF M: MASTERS OF EVIL #4
IMMORTAL WEAPONS #4
IRON MAN & THE ARMOR WARS #4
MARVEL ZOMBIES RETURN #3 2ND PRINTING VARIANT
MARVEL ZOMBIES: EVIL EVOLUTION
NOVA #31
OFFICIAL INDEX TO THE MARVEL UNIVERSE #11
PSYLOCKE #1
STARR THE SLAYER #3
STRANGE TALES #3
THE MARVELOUS LAND OF OZ #1
THE MARVELOUS LAND OF OZ #1 MCGUINNESS VARIANT
THE MARVELOUS LAND OF OZ #1 SHANOWER VARIANT
THE TORCH #3
ULTIMATE COMICS AVENGERS #2 2ND PRINTING VARIANT
ULTIMATE COMICS SPIDER-MAN #4
X-MEN ORIGINS: ICEMAN
X-MEN VS. AGENTS OF ATLAS #2
X-MEN VS. AGENTS OF ATLAS #2 RAMOS VARIANT
Collections On-Sale:CRIMINAL: THE DELUXE EDITION HC
EXILES: POINT OF NO RETURN TPB
FANTASTIC FOUR VISIONARIES: WALTER SIMONSON VOL. 3 TPB
GHOST RIDER: DANNY KETCH CLASSIC VOL. 1 TPB
MARVEL ZOMBIES 3 TPB
NOVA VOL. 5: WAR OF KINGS TPB
TERROR, INC.: APOCALYPSE SOON TPB
TIMESTORM 2009/2099 HC
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
Bluewater's Michael Jackson Tribute Sells-Out, Second-Printing on the Way
The collector’s edition tribute featuring Michael Jackson sold-out days before the book was scheduled to be released, according to the trade paperback’s publisher, Bluewater Productions. A second-printing is being rushed to fulfill orders; Tribute: Michael Jackson, King of Pop hit comic shops, newsstands, and online sites last Wednesday, and already requires a second printing.“We knew it would be a popular title, but even we were surprised how fast the book sold,” said Bluewater president, Darren Davis. “We leaked pages to different sites, shared them with fans, and they decided this is a book worth owning.”
A second-printing of the book will be released with a new cover by Giuseppe Mazzola from Jackson’s official fan club. Mazzola also provided the foreword to the expanded 30-page edition.
“This is a celebration of his life and what he meant to a legion of fans,” Davis added. “Although the book won’t shy away from some of his personal troubles, we try to tell a balanced story that shows Jackson as a musical genius, an unparalleled superstar and a complex person.”
The newest addition to the publisher's critically acclaimed biography library traces Jackson’s rise as a musical prodigy with the Jackson 5, through his tragic passing in June. The book features highlights from his storied career, and covers his enigmatic private life
© C Harris Lynn, 2009
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