Previews and Reviews that are Z's Views
Vin Diesel’s next film is Bloodshot based on the Valiant comic book character created by Kevin VanHook, Don Perlin, and Bob Layton. The art above (autographed by Diesel and featuring him as Bloodshot) was created by Lewis LaRosa for Paul Walker’s Reach Out Worldwide charity.
Check out Chris Evangelista’s post Vin Diesel As ‘Bloodshot’ Revealed in Concept Art at /Film to learn more about the movie, the comic character and to see a larger version of the art above.
Three years ago this month, I posted Victor Santos’ Polar Headed to the Big Screen! Well, guess what! Premiering in 2019, on Netflix, Polar: Came from the Cold, the movie adaptation (directed by Jonas Åkerlund and starring Mads Mikkelsen) follows a retired assassin who finds himself and his child the target of assassins. In anticipation of the film Dark Horse has prepared a second edition of Polar: Came from the Cold (the graphic novel that started the series).
Santos followed the original story with Polar Volume 2: Eye for an Eye. Here’s the synopsis:
Left adrift in arctic waters with a gunshot wound to the head, adrift in arctic waters, Christy White was rescued from an icy death by a mysterious man. She craved retribution, and he taught her how to get it–how to make sense of her past and how to kill. They tried to freeze her out, but they should have finished the job, because now she’s back with a vengeance!
Santos was on a roll, so next came…
Polar Volume 3: No Mercy for Sister Maria…
After two years on the run, mob boss Don Cagliostro discovers his young wife, Maria–seeking escape from a life of organized crime–has been hiding in a nunnery in northern Europe. What the don doesn’t know is that his right-hand man, Sullivan, who’s been tasked with bringing the girl back home, is actually an undercover FBI agent seeking out Maria as a star witness in his case against the family. A simple-enough task . . . until info on Maria’s whereabouts leaks. When mobsters, mercenaries, and hit men converge on the convent in the hopes of collecting a reward for bringing Maria to the don, the holy ground becomes a battleground!
Up to this point, all the Polar stories first appeared at Santos’ Polarcomic.com before being reprinted in hardcover editions. Santos surprised his fans recently with the announcement that a fourth Polar volume would be coming out on April 2, 2019!
Polar Volume 4: The Kaiser Falls…
An indomitable, yet aging spy assimilates to retirement in Miami, until a rookie assassin locates him and challenges him to his crown.
Living a simple life down in the Miami sunshine gets complicated when Black Kaiser’s housemaid has some problems involving a local gang. However, resurfacing to maintain the peace, puts him right in the new adversary’s crosshairs. Buckle up because Black Kaiser’s last ride is going to get rough!
Wait! There’s more!
What? How can that be if Polar Volume 4 is the final chapter?
I’m glad you asked. You see, Santos originally published an origin story in Spain that has never seen print in the US! But thanks the fine folks at Dark Horse and Victor Santos we’ll get to see the original story but remastered to make it look even better!
Polar Volume 0: The Black Kaiser…
The Black Kaiser, a name whispered in dark corners amongst power czars across the globe. A cold knife in the dark. A secret agent. Delve into the origin of the most feared assassin as his current mission lands him on American soil and in direct conflict with the nefarious agency known as the Damocles Initiative.
New York Times Bestseller Victor Santos (Filthy Rich, Violent Love) takes you back to the beginning with the origin of his iconic character Black Kaiser! A violent and fast-paced thriller. Now a Major Motion Picture.
I’m stoked for the continuation of the Polar series. Polar is unique in that in each volume a new (or returning character) becomes the star for that volume. Black Kaiser was the lead in the first book, but was a supporting player in the next tale with the Christy White character getting the starring role. The third volume was set in the Polar universe and with the fourth volume the Kaiser returns to center stage.
I’ve gotten the first three Polar volumes and look forward to revisiting that universe with Volumes 4 and 0. And if the movie is good, that’s just a bonus!
Today we have a rarely seen barbarian drawn by the master, Barry Windsor Smith. You can see a larger version at The Beauty of Black Lines.
The Rocky drawing above was created by the guy in the photo below. He goes by Moritat but his given name is Justin Norman. I met Moritat at The Infinity Toy and Comic Con in Kissimmee earlier this year. I was hanging out with John Beatty (who was also set up at the show) and Moritat was at the next table. I saw the fantastic art Moritat was creating and enjoyed talking with him, so it was only natural I asked for a sketch. If we hadn’t had to leave the show early, I’d have gotten another.
Brad Gullickson and Film School Rejects present The 10 Best Comic Book Horror Movies. (Sadly the original post is no longer available.) Using just Gullickson’s list, here are his comments (and mine) for my top three:
30 Days of Night (2007)
Most vampire movies leave me cold, so color me surprised to find one of my favorites set in the freezing wasteland of Alaska’s eternal night. In addition to a brilliant premise — a tribe of vamps arriving in Barrow, AK just as the town settles into month-long seasonal darkness — the film delivers with some truly brutal and terrifically designed creatures and kills, engaging characters, and memorable cinematography. It’s a tight, visceral horror film that breathes life into the undead the same way 28 Days Later did with “zombies,” and it ends with a legitimately touching emotional beat. Now where’s my goddamn sequel?! (he said, knowing full well a lesser follow-up came and went in 2010). – Rob HunterCraig: I was a big fan of Steve Niles work, so his (and Ben Templesmith’s) 30 Days of Night comic series set the bar pretty high. I loved the concept of an isolated city in Alaska about to go through its annual 30 days of night. Of course vampires would want to go there. And they do, with the intent to wipe out the town during a month of excessive feasting. Just writing about this movie makes me want to view it again.
The Crow (1994)
From page to screen, the legacy of The Crow is synonymous with tragedy. The original graphic novel was created as a form of catharsis for writer James O’Barr after his girlfriend was taken too soon because of a drunk driver. Of course, most of you will know the story of Brandon Lee’s freak death while filming a shootout scene cpurtesy of a real bullet among the blanks. As a result, there’s an air of melancholy to The Crow that few other movies have captured. At the same time, it’s also a highly stylish and entertaining actioner with a rocking soundtrack befitting of the dark gods. The sequels all suck, but the first movie is a bona fide masterpiece of supernatural vigilante storytelling. – Kieran FisherCraig: Like 30 Days of Night, I was familiar with James O’Barr’s The Crow from it’s first published appearance in Caliber comics. The movie did a great job of adapting the comics and staying true to O’Barr’s vision. Brandon Lee (Bruce Lee’s son, who died during filming) was a bonus.
Blade II (2002)
I love Wesley Snipes, and I adore the joyful bravado that he injects into his Daywalker. He may pretend he’s brooding, but that’s a cat who (internally) whistles while he works. Slaying vampires has never been more satisfying. But – look. This is not just a Blade film. Guillermo del Toro came off Mimic and The Devil’s Backbone and threw his entire geeky consciousness into Blade II. Each frame is packed with references to Hellboy, Watchmen, The Searchers, Vampire Hunter D, Predator, Nosferatu, etc. For as suave and cool as the vampires were in the original film, del Toro comes at his Reapers with a Richard Matheson “I Am Legend” mentality. These are not pretty creatures that sip blood to the tunes of the children of the night. These are savage animals that threaten to devour the world, and force night and day walkers to unite in a Dirty Dozen team-up. The climax amounts to a vicious series of showdowns between hero and monster: the traitor, the goon, the count, and finally, the beast. After all is said and done, you may even find yourself getting misty over the tragedy of it all. – Brad Gullickson
Craig: I never read comics featuring Blade. I didn’t care for the original Blade movie at all. I thought Wesley Snipes was perfect as Blade and as a fan of Guillermo del Toro, willing to give Blade II a chance. I am so glad I did, because I loved it. How could you not love Blade going up against the King of all Vampires? Blade II is going to get another viewing from me soon.
This is one of four Universal Monsters trading cards drawn by Mike Mignola and posted by Cool Comic Art. You can see the one above as well as the other 3 Mignola Universal Monsters cards here.
Wow. This brought back some great memories. Frank Miller (writer) and David Mazzucchelli (artist) were killing it with their new limited series Batman: Year One. There was no internet. The Comic Buyer’s Guide (a weekly newspaper for comic fans) was the nearest thing to advance word on comics besides some monthly fan magazines.
So when DC started posting teaser ads for Batman: Year One and promoting the series like it was a special event (which it was), you knew you were in for a treat.
Thanks to I Can’t Stop Thinking About Comics for posting this rare ad. If you’d like to see a larger version ICSTAC has one at their site.
The Jack Carter & Marv (from Sin City) piece above was created as a commission for me at HeroesCon 2018 by Karl Slominski. I met Karl for the first time at the 2017 Heroes convention when I requested Karl’s take on Jack Carter and John Wick (which will be posted in the near future).
When I picked up the sketch, my buddies LittleJohn and Mike Cross were with me. They both liked my sketch so much they commissioned sketches of their own. LittleJohn got John Wick and John McClane, while Mike asked for Snake Plissken (Kurt Russell) and Maggie (Adrienne Barbeau).
This encouraged me to go back for another “Jack Carter and…” sketch, this time getting Carter and Raylan Givens from Justified. I’ll post that in the near future as well. (Yes, I am way behind in posting my sketches. I do plan to, ah, justify that in the coming weeks.)
If you’d like to see more of Karl Slominski’s art check out…
Trav Hart created this piece for me at last year’s HeroesCon. It’s actually my third piece from Trav (so watch for the other two).
Pairing John Wick and Jack Carter seems like a natural.
You can see more of Trav’s art at his site… and here in the coming weeks.
Today we have a sweet Nick Fury piece by the legendary Steranko!
Leroy Neiman, the world famous sports artist, made cameo appearances in Rocky 3, 4, 5 and Rocky Balboa. Neiman’s art could also be seen in several of the Rocky movies. The most famous Neiman Rocky art is the painting shown above. You’ll see copies hanging in many sports bars and man caves throughout the world. I own one of the original release prints that my wife surprised me with when I was in college.
The painting above is the second most known Neiman Rocky painting. It appeared at the very end of Rocky III. To the best of my knowledge it was never released as an official Neiman print although there are many knock-offs and other artists’ copies out there.
Neiman created the painting above for Rocky V. My understanding is that it was released as a limited edition print for a fundraiser. The print above was signed by Tommy Morrison.
The Neiman watercolor study above was offered up for auction and hopefully won by a Stallone fan.
And now for the mystery. The very bad image above is of a Neiman Rocky piece that sharp-eyed fans spotted during a vintage Barbara Walters interview with Sly Stallone. The art was/is in Sly Stallone’s personal collection. Here’s the mystery — was the piece ever released as a print or shown anywhere else? Are there any good copies of it around? If anyone knows, please forward the information and I’ll be sure to share it.
If you’re a fan of classic horror films and/or amazing art, then you’ll want to check out The Monster Art of Basil Gogos. This will be a beautiful compilation that will contain…
… page after page of unpublished sketches, illustrations and exquisite full color paintings by the monster master…
The Kickstarter has already met goal and now is on overdrive to create stretch goals. I’m on board. Check it out and you may be as well.
I really like Thomas Boatwright’s riff on Sly from F.I.S.T. Hopefully, you do as well.
Over the years I’ve gotten several Stallone pieces from Thomas. Click on the link to see what has been posted so far… there are more to come.
If you’d like to see more of Thomas Boatwright’s art check out his blog and his instagram. Send him some love.
If you get commissions, you should consider a piece from Thomas. He keeps you totally in the loop on his progress, finishes his commissions on or ahead of schedule, has very reasonable prices, is a fantastic artist and always gives you more than you’re expecting! – Craig
Thomas Boatwright created the piece above when I requested Sly from Paradise Alley. Boatwright is such a Tom Waits fan that he felt compelled to add him since Waits played Mumbles in the movie. How cool is that?
Over the years I’ve gotten several Stallone pieces from Thomas. Click on the link to see what has been posted so far… there are more to come.
If you’d like to see more of Thomas Boatwright’s art check out his blog and his instagram. Send him some love.
If you get commissions, you should consider a piece from Thomas. He keeps you totally in the loop on his progress, finishes his commissions on or ahead of schedule, has very reasonable prices, is a fantastic artist and always gives you more than you’re expecting! – Craig
I’m really looking forward to the Midnight Mystery mini-series by Bernie Gonzalez. It’s described as…
… a suspense/horror comic book series that follows the strange adventures of detective Ezekiel “Zeke” King. It’s a mix of Supernatural, X-Files, and film noir movies told in the style of Batman: The Animated Series and Darwyn Cooke’s New Frontier.
This puts it close to the middle of my Venn diagram of things that I enjoy. If a Stallone-looking character ever makes an appearance, it will move to dead-center. Ah, but I digress.
I heard that Bernie G. was going to do a long video interview and was looking for potential questions. So, I sent one in.
You can imagine my surprise when I heard my question asked and answered during the interview. I was even more surprised when Bernie sent me the art above as a “thank-you” for sending in my question!
So Bernie, if you’re reading this… Thank YOU!
