Category: Comics

ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD: The Deluxe Hardcover by Quentin Tarantino / Z-View

Posted on by


Once Upon a Time in Hollywood: The Deluxe Hardcover by Quentin Tarantino

Hardcover: 400 pages
Publisher: Harper

First sentence…

The buzzer on Marvin Schwarz’s desk makes a noise.

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is the fictionalized account of Hollywood actor and tv star, Rick Dalton, his stuntman and best friend, Cliff Booth and the famous/infamous folks they run into in Hollywood in the late 60s.  If you’ve seen Tarantino’s movie of the same name, then you know the story… or at least most of it.  The novel goes into greater detail especially in regard to Cliff Booth.  If you liked the movie, you should enjoy the book.  If you think, I’ve seen the movie, I don’t need a rehash in a novelization, you might be surprised.  There’s a different story structure in the novel than the film and time to dig a deeper into the characters.

If you haven’t seen the movie, let me get you up to speed.  Rick Dalton was a rising movie star.  He had a western tv series called Bounty Law.  It was popular and ran for a few years.  Dalton then went into feature films, but that was then.  Now Dalton appears to be on his way down.  He’s been regulated to guest starring in television shows and usually ends up beaten and beaten up by the star of the show.  Dalton hopes he’ll get another run at feature films.  Cliff Booth is a World War II decorated vet, a stuntman and Rick’s best friend.  Booth may or may not have killed his wife (we find out for sure in the novel).  He also went toe-to-toe with Bruce Lee in a challenge that pretty much ended Booth getting stunt work.  Rick and Cliff will also have run-ins with the Charlie Manson family, Sharon Tate and others.  To say more would be to say too much,

Tarantino is more of a story-teller than a writer.  Someone said if the novel was better written, it wouldn’t be as good.  That may sound strange, but I get the sentiment.  As you read Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, there’s the feeling that we’re hearing the tale from an insider and not a writer somewhere trying to polish his prose.  I loved the inside stories/legends of real life actors/actresses in Hollywood.

The Deluxe Edition also features a Rick Dalton Bounty Law episode script; Photos of lobby cards from two of Rick Dalton’s feature films, two Bounty Law stills, two Bounty Law TV Guide covers, two Bounty Law comic book covers, a Bounty Law lunchbox, Bounty Law production art, a Bounty Law board game, 8 movie posters featuring Rick Dalton and other real-life stars, and a MAD magazine Bounty Law parody featuring the cover and story by Andrew Secunda and Tom Richmond.

I enjoyed Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and hope that Tarantino writes more novels.  I’m a sucker for a good story.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood rates 4 of 5 stars.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood: The Deluxe Hardcover
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood Paperback
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood Kindle

“Samaritan” (2022) Starring Sly Stallone / Z-View

Posted on by

Samaritan (2022)

Director:  Julius Avery

Screenplay by:  Bragi F. Schut

Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Javon ‘Wanna’ Walton, Pilou Asbæk, Dascha Polanco, Sophia Tatum, Moises Arias, Martin Starr and Jared Odrick

Tagline:  25 Years Ago the World’s Greatest Hero Vanished

The Overview:  Beware of spoilers…

Sam (Walton) is a thirteen year old who lives with his single-parent mother (Polanco) in an apartment in a rough part of Granite City.  Sam’s a latchkey kid since his mom has to put in a lot of hours at work.  Sam spends a good deal of his time researching Samaritan.  Samaritan was a superhero believed to have died twenty-five years ago along with the villainous Nemesis (who happened to be his twin brother!). while they were fighting in a burning building.

Sam has come to think that Joe (Stallone), a garbage man who lives in an apartment across the street is Samaritan!  Despite the mounting evidence, Joe denies he’s the missing superhero.  As Sam comes home one day, some gangbangers jump and begin beating him.  Joe rushes to the rescue, displaying super strength as he runs off the thugs.  Now Sam and Joe are in the sights of the gang led by Cyrus ( Asbæk)… who plan to kill the old man…

Sly Stallone is back!  He’s excellent in the role of Joe/Samaritan and supported by a well-cast group of actors.  Javon Walton is extremely likeable in the role of Sam.  Often child actors have a hard time finding the balance of cute and instead come off annoying.  That’s not the case with Walton.  I expect big things from him in the future.  Pilou Asbæk, Dascha Polanco and Sophia Tatum are also excellent. Asbæk is a great bad guy.  I’d love to see him play an anti-hero in the future.  Polanco and Tatum aren’t given a lot to do, but when they’re on screen all eyes are on them.  I hope to see more leading parts for them in the future.  I enjoyed Julius Avery’s direction.  He’s not flashy, but puts the camera in the right place to maximize drama and/or action.

If you’ve seen the Samaritan trailers, there’s a dialogue change from the trailer to the film which is great for a surprising laugh.  Joe is hit by a car and left mangled in the street, he starts starts to heal and in the trailer Sam asks, “Are you okay?” Joe responds (in pain), “I’m cool.”  In the film the same set-up but this time Joe’s response is, “F*** no.”  I burst out laughing.  That was well-played.

There’s a twist in the film that happens near the end.  I won’t give it away, but will say I absolutely did not see that coming.  I loved it.  The twist took the story up a notch.  As to the Samaritan story itself, some folks are complaining it’s too simple.  I agree, it is simple, but let’s not lose sight that Samaritan is modern day mythology.

Samaritan is a tale of good vs evil.  Another theme is that good and evil live can live in each of us and we have to decide which way we will go.  If you’re okay with a story about super-heroes who happen to be twins… with one being good and the other being evil… that takes place in a town called Granite City… and a young boy who is searching for the missing hero and finds him living basically next door… and the missing super hero now has a job as a garbage man (a person who cleans up the city) but you want a more complex tale, you may be missing the point of the modern mythology that is being created.  Or Samaritan may not be for you.

As for me, I loved the ride.  At first I thought Samaritan would be a movie best loved by younger kids.  But later in the film, it gets darker and then there’s the twist.  I still think teenagers and adults open to this newly created mythology will enjoy Samaritan.  If I was going to pick any nits, it would be the fire cgi used in the extended fight scene at the end.  But why nitpick when Samaritan is such a fun time.  I hope to see a sequel — it certainly opens the door for more movies or a tv series.

Samaritan earns 4 of 5 stars.

TRAIN 8 – The Zombie Express / Z-View

Posted on by

TRAIN 8 – The Zombie Express

Created and written by David Stephan and Marysol Levant
Additional writing and dialogue by Brian Phillipson
Art by Alex Cormack
Colors by Ashley Cormack and Alex Cormack
Letters and book design by Alex Murillo

The Overview:  Beware of spoilers…

Train 8 is a high speed train traveling from Seattle to Chicago a few days before Thanksgiving.  It is barreling along when a passenger infected with a virus dies and reanimates as a zombie.  Soon things are out of control as passengers fight an ever-increasing number of the undead.  Surviving the zombies may not be enough, since the government plans to destroy everyone and everything on the train!

Train 8 was originally written as a film script.  It probably would have made a cool movie.  It’s not bad as a graphic novel.  Although the writing is a bit redundant/clunky in places, the story moves.  Some scenes are colored a bit too dark, but that’s expected when the lights go out.  ; )    Props for the ending which is foreshadowed but is still a surprise and sets up a potential sequel.

Overall, I enjoyed TRAIN 8.  If you’re a zombie fan, you should give it a look.

TRAIN 8 – The Zombie Express earns 3 of 5 stars.

“Hellboy” (2019) / Z-View

Posted on by

Hellboy (2019)

Director:  Neil Marshall

Screenplay by:  Andrew Cosby based on the world and characters created by Mike Mignola

Starring:  David Harbour, Milla Jovovich, Ian McShane, Sasha Lane, Daniel Dae Kim and Thomas Haden Church

Tagline  Demons Have Demons Too.

The Overview:  Beware of spoilers…

In the final days of World War II, the Nazis make a last ditch effort to win the war by attempting to summon demons from Hell.  Lobster Johnson and American forces stop the Nazis, but not before a demon child that will be called Hellboy appears.  Hellboy is raised by Professor Trevor “Broom” Bruttenholm (McShane) to fight things that go bump in the night.  You know, witches, demons and the like.

Vivienne Nimue, the Blood Queen (Jovovich) has a plan to get Hellboy to turn his back on humans and rule as her King.  Normally we wouldn’t have to worry, but lately Hellboy has been having self-doubt and “daddy issues.”

I’m a fan of Mike Mignola’s Hellboy as well as the first two Hellboy films starring Ron Perlman and directed by Guillermo del Toro.  While I would have loved them to return for a third film, I was open to a new director, star and take on the character.  When the first posters/photos started coming out, I liked the look.  Sadly the movie is nowhere as bad ass as the publicity materials.  Hellboy has a cool appearance, but is physically too small.  He should be huge,  In the film he looks to be the height of an average person.  Hellboy also came off as whiney.  If Hellboy doesn’t work, the film is in trouble.

As to the story, it’s all over the place.  We get the origin of the Blood Queen.  We get the origin of Hellboy.  We get extended scenes of Hellboy fighting giants.  We get Hellboy fighting a pig-fairy,  We get Hellboy fighting a one-eyed witch.  In between we get Hellboy complaining to his “dad”, showing what a rebel he is by refusing to take his feet off Winston Churchill’s desk and jokes that often fall flat.

I wanted to like Hellboy, but can only give it 2 of 5 stars.

RIP: Paul Coker Jr.

Posted on by

Paul Coker Jr. died on July 23, 2022 after a short illness his family has confirmed.  Mr. Coker was 93.

If you don’t know Paul Coker’s name, my guess is you would recognize his art.  Mr. Coker’s art regularly appeared in MAD magazine beginning in 1961 and continuing for decades.  He was known for his recurring cartoon Horrifying Cliches as well as film and television parodies which included Star Trek, Jurassic Park, Twister, and Frasier.  Mr. Coker also illustrated eight MAD paperbacks.

Even if you weren’t a reader of MAD magazine, you probably would remember Mr. Coker’s art from his work as a production designer on Rankin/Bass Specials which included: Frosty the Snowman; Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town; Here Comes Peter Cottontail; ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas; The Year Without a Santa Claus; Frosty’s Winter Wonderland and Rudolph and Frosty’s Christmas in July to name just a few.

I loved Paul Coker’s work in MAD magazine.  I’m also old enough to remember watching Frosty the Snowman when it premiered.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to Paul Coker Jr.’s family, friends and fans.

The Ghost and Mr. Chicken (1966) / Z-View

Posted on by

The Ghost and Mr. Chicken (1966)

Director:   Alan Rafkin

Screenplay by:  James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum and Andy Griffith (uncredited)

Starring:  Don Knotts, Joan Staley, Liam Redmond, Dick Sargent,  Skip Homeier, Reta Shaw and Charles Lane

Tagline: G-G-GUARANTEED! YOU’LL BE SCARED UNTIL YOU LAUGH YOURSELF SILLY!

The Overview:  Beware of spoilers…

Luther Heggs (Knotts) is a typesetter for the local newspaper.  He dreams of being a reporter.  Luther also dreams of having Alma Parker (Staley) as his girl.  Unfortunately Luther becomes an easy target for jokes when his reports of a murder turn out to be just a drunk knocked unconscious by his wife.  Ollie Weaver (Homeier) a reporter for the newspaper is especially cruel to Luther and to make matters worse, Ollie is dating Alma!

Luther gets a chance at redemption when his boss assigns him a story — Luther will spend the night in a haunted house where a brutal murder occurred years ago.  Despite his fears, Luther spends the night.  Strange things happen that could lead to solving the murder mystery… if anyone will believe Luther!

Don Knotts starring in The Ghost and Mr. Chicken is a natural.  Knotts was built to play Luther.  Luther’s dream girl, Alma was played by Joan Staley and she was also built — she was a Playboy playmate of the month!  Fans of The Andy Griffith Show will recognize the similarities between The Ghost and Mr. Chicken and an episode of the tv show.  It was Andy Griffith who suggested that the episode would make a great feature film starring Knotts if the idea was expanded for a new character.  Knotts recruited James Fritzell and Everett Greenbaum, writers on The Andy Griffith Show to come up with a screenplay.  Knotts also suggested Alan Rafkin (who directed several episodes of the tv show) to helm the feature.  There are also cast members in the movie who appeared on the tv series.

The Ghost and Mr. Chicken rates 4 of 5 stars (and higher if you’re a kid).

Tom King & Phil Hester on GOTHAM CITY: YEAR ONE!

Posted on by

Writer, Tom King and artist, Phil Hester are going to team to bring us Gotham City: Year One from DC Comics.  The series takes place decades before Bruce Wayne became Batman.  It will follow an investigator named Slam Bradley who is looking for a missing child with ties to the Wayne family.

Phil Hester was quoted as saying…

“Night falls quickly in Gotham City. The shadows cut across guilty and innocent alike. I feel lucky to be the artist to show you just how this city got so dark in the first place…Tom has crafted a story that will echo across Batman lore past and present,..”

For more information and preview art https://www.cbr.com/dc-explores-gotham-city-origin-story-new-series/check out CBR.com’s DC Explores Gotham City’s Origin Story in a New Series.

RIP: Jim Ivey

Posted on by

I got the call last night.  It wasn’t unexpected. Jim had been ill for quite some time and the night before had been admitted to the hospital.  Jim Ivey passed away last night.  He was 97 years old.

Jim was born James (but preferred the much less formal, Jim) Burnett Ivey on April 15, 1925 in Chattanooga, Tennessee.  Jim attended the University of Louisville, George Washington University, the National Art School in D.C. and also took correspondence courses through the Landon School of Illustration and Cartooning.  Jim served as a US Navy submariner from 1943 to 1946.

After the war, Jim was a Reid Fellowship recipient to study political cartooning in Europe.  Jim worked in the editorial art department for the Washington Star and the St. Petersburg Times before accepting an editorial cartoonist position at the San Francisco Examiner where he remained from 1959 – 1966.  Jim then worked as a freelance artist until 1970 when he accepted a cartoonist position with the Orlando Sentinel (where he stayed until 1977).

In 1967, Jim opened The Cartoon Museum using items from his own collection.  The Cartoon Museum sold all forms of original art including political cartoons, comic book art, newspaper strips, and more.  In addition, The Cartoon Museum branched out to include collectibles of all types.  Jim also began publishing a quarterly titled cARToon.  In addition Jim continued to work as a freelance artist and artist on the syndicated Thoughts of Man comic panel!

In 1974, Jim along with Charlie Roberts, Richard Kravitz, Rob Word, and Neil Austin started the annual OrlandoCon convention which celebrated comic books and comic art.  Jim was joined by Bill Black and Mike Kott to keep OrlandoCon going as an annual event through 1996, Each year the OrlandoCon guest of honor received a gold brick called the Ignatz Award named in honor of George Herriman’s Krazy Kat. (The brick was a sign of affection!)  Each year there was also a charity auction to benefit the Milt Gross Fund of the National Cartoonists Society (Jim Ivey was a member and regional Chairman).

 In 1977, Jim went back to freelance work.  From 1978 to 1983 Jim was an adjunct professor at the University of Central Florida where he taught a course on the Art of Cartooning.

Jim was also an author.  His books include U.S. History in Cartoons The Civil War through WW II, Roy Crane’s Wash Tubbs, the First Adventure Comic Strip (co-authored with Gordon Campbell) and Cartoons I Liked.  Jim’s essays could often be found in Hogan’s Alley, the Comics Journal, World of Comic Art and other sources.  Jim was an a member of the American Association of Editorial Cartoonists and the National Cartoonists Society.  He was the National Cartoonists Society T-Square award recipient in 1979.

I met Jim in 1977.  My buddy, John Beatty and I began driving from Daytona to Jim’s Cartoon Museum each week to pick up new comics and hang out with Jim.  Before long our visits began to include marathon poker games.  Jim loved to play cards (or gamble on most anything).  Oh, the times we had.  When I moved to Orlando in 1980 to attend the University of Central Florida, my trips to The Cartoon Museum changed from weekly to almost daily visits.  Hanging out with Jim in the Cartoon Museum was a magical time.  You never knew who or what might come though the door.  I meet so many wonderful people (collectors, artists, writers and more) because of Jim.

Jim closed The Cartoon Museum in 1981.  A year or so later he opened again in a new location.  In the 1990s when  Jim was ready to semi-retire he opened a used book store.  Jim finally did retire around 20 or so years ago.  I’m proud to say that we continued to stay in touch (Jim didn’t use a computer, so it was phone or snail mail).  Twice a year, I would organize a get-together with Jim’s Cartoon Museum and OrlandoCon friends who could attend.  We’d celebrate Jim’s birthday and Christmas for Jim at a local breakfast spot.  The get-togethers would turn into three hour marathons of laughter and fond memories.  Jim enjoyed these times as much as those of us who could attend.

I’ve been in contact with the regular group to let them know of Jim’s passing.  We’re planning a celebration of Jim’s life get-together.  It will probably be  one day during the last weekend of September (that weekend was the traditional date of OrlandoCon).  If you’re interested in attending or want more details as we work things out, e-mail me.

Jim was my oldest friend.  I treasure the hours we spent hanging out together.  He was an original and will be missed but never forgotten.  My thoughts and prayers go out to Jim’s family and friends.

“The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen” Starring Sean Connery (2003) / Z-View

Posted on by

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003)

Director: Stephen Norrington

Screenplay by:  James Dale Robinson based on The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen comic books by Alan Moore, Kevin O’Neill

Starring:  Sean Connery, Stuart Townsend, Peta Wilson, Jason Flemyng, Naseeruddin Shah, Tony Curran, Shane West  and Richard Roxburgh

Tagline: The power of seven become a league of one

The Overview:  Beware of spoilers

It’s 1899.  A man who calls himself the Fantom leads an army of terrorists who strike without pity and leave clues implicating foreign countries.  The Fantom’s goal is to create a world war from which he will profit.

In an effort to bring down the Fantom a group of “extraordinary gentlemen” are recruited by “M” (Roxburgh):

  • Allan Quatermain (Connery) the famous hunter/tracker
  • Captain Nemo (Shah) the famous scientist/adventurer
  • Mina Harker (Wilson) who has vampire-like abilities
  • Dr. Henry Jekyll (Flemyng) who becomes the raging Mr. Hyde
  • Rodney Skinner (Curran), a thief who stole a formula that makes him invisible
  • Dorian Gray (Townsend) who appears to be immortal and
  • Tom Sawyer (West) who is a special agent from the United States

The “extraordinary gentlemen” make a formidable team, but there is a traitor among them…

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen gets a bad rap with some folks.  Perhaps some of that was caused by the tension on the set between director Stephen Norrington and Sean Connery.  Neither man enjoyed working with the other.  Sadly, it was Connery’s last live action film.  Some say the experience on The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen led to his retirement.  Surprisingly, it was also Norrington’s last film as well.

There are another group of fans who loved the comics by Alan Moore and Kevin O’Neill and were disappointed with things the film changed.  Since I’ve never read the comics (and I do need to fix that!), I went into the movie with no preconceived thoughts.

As for the movie, I enjoyed it.  What’s not to love?  You have famous characters from different stories teaming up against a larger than life menace to the world!  The introductory scenes of each character is where the movie really shines.  We quickly learn who each person is and then we’re off on the adventure.  I would have loved this film even more if I was a kid… but there’s still enough of a kid in me to rate it 4 of 5 stars.

Scott Christian Sava’s Six 007s!

Posted on by

Scott Christian Sava is an animator, illustrator, director, writer, producer and founder of Blue Dream Studios. Scott has produced work for Disney, Universal Studios and Nickelodeon.  Movies using Scott’s art include Star Wars, X-Files, Aliens vs. Predator, Spider-Man, and Animal Crackers (which was Blue Dream Studios’ first feature and was the number 1 animated film in the world in 2020!).

Scott is also the artist of the James Bond sketches above.  Scott Christian Sava is a great artist, but also one of the kindest and coolest human beings on social media. You can find him on Twitter,  Instagram, TikTok and Facebook.