Previews and Reviews that are Z's Views
We have over 2 million people locked up in US prisons. Conditions are usually tough. Gangs, violence and drugs are rampant. Everyone cries out for a solution and yet no one really knows what should be done… until now.
It seems that a prison in the Philippines has a program that all inmates enjoy and participate in. I give you the 1,500+ inmates of the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center, Cebu, Philippines in their version of Michael Jackson’s Thriller.
Greg Rucka, one of my favorite novelists, has announced that he’ll be writing a new detective series called Stumptown that takes place in the same world as his novels!Although Rucka has been writing award-winning [Whiteout — soon to be a major motion picture] and fan favorite comics [Queen & Country, Gotham Central, etc] for some time, it is his five Atticus Kodiac novels [Finder, Keeper, Smoker, Shooting at Midnight, and Critical Space] that put him on my “must buy” list.
Rucka has a new Atticus Kodiac novel, Patriot Acts, coming out next month. It’s already on my pre-order list!
Over at The Big Heat rates an A
When I was a kid, I loved “Dark Shadows”. For a time it was one of my favorite shows. Barnabas Collins was the man!
Johnny Depp has just signed to play tv’s coolest vampire in a movie version of “Dark Shadows”. Depp is an excellent choice and here’s to hoping that the big-screen versions of Barnabus and “Dark Shadows” live up to the legacy started on the tube.
ComicBookResources.com posted a report today that Image comics will be expanding their take on “Frank Frazetta’s Death Dealer” into several series based on other Frazetta paintings. As I read the piece, I started thinking, this could be very cool if done correctly. Then I read…
“The Silver Warrior” is a four-issue mini-series by Fotos, Nat Jones and Joshua Ortega. One-shots include Rick Remender on Frazetta’s “Creatures,” “Swamp Demon” written by Joshua Ortega, Steve Niles handling “Dracula Meets The Wolfman,” and Mark Kidwell doing the same for “Dark Kingdom.”
Nearly four years ago issue #1 of The Walking Dead hit the stands. I bought it and really dug both the art and story. I soon discovered that I wasn’t alone. A lot of people were buying and loving it!
Before long The Walking Dead was my favorite comic. After the first six issues, artist Tony Moore left the regular art chores and Charlie Adlard took up the slack. The book remained my favorite regularly published comic.
Each month The Walking Dead was the comic that I most looked forward to reading. From time to time, I’d talk up the series so that ZONErs who’d never heard of it would have a chance to jump on board. Robert [creator of The Walking Dead] Kirkman’s interview at Newsarama.com reminded me that I hadn’t crowed about The Walking Dead in a while.
So I decided to remedy that with this post.
The Walking Dead Book 1 [Collects the first 12 issues in an affordable hardcover] A+ rating
The Walking Dead Book 2 [Collects the second 12 issues in an affordable hardcover] A+ rating
Today I thought we could take a look at Six of the All-Time Best Movie Fights. First, some parameters… let’s limit the fights to people [no King Kong vs T-Rex], let’s limit the special effects [no Neo vs Agent Smith], and let’s try to limit the weapons.5. Nada [Roddy Piper] vs. Frank [David Keith] in They Live
4. Chaney [Charles Bronson] vs. Jim Henry [Robert Tessier] in Hard Times
3. A Number 1[Lee Marvin] vs. Shack [Ernest Borgnine] from Emperor of the North
2. Rocky Balboa [Sylvester Stallone] vs. any opponent in Rocky – Rocky Balboa
1. Lee [Bruce Lee] vs. everyone from Enter the Dragon
So what did I forget?
Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips are tearing it up with their series, Criminal. I know I’ve mentioned my love for their work a time or two, but it was Phillips’ stunning cover above that reminded me to spread the word a bit more. And don’t forget to pick-up the monthly issues or the first trade paperback.
You’ll be glad you did.
I really like the trailer. I’m not overly fond of the poster. I hope to love the movie,
That’s Brenna Barry surrounded by Keith Mallow and Wild Bill Black. For some reason the guys seem much happier than Brenna. I wonder why? That photo and those that follow were taken yesterday at Collector’s Comic-Con in Fort Pierce, Florida. Keith puts on the show and brought in Brenna, Bill and John Beatty as special guests. Keith and Big John always invite me along and since I enjoy their nonsense, I always make an effort to attend.
That’s Aleissa [hope I spelled that correctly] and her boyfriend. Aleissa is one of John’s returning sketch customers. This time she opted for a Batman and Beatty came through in style.
Jesse “Cadre” Hansen was set up selling prints and sketching!Wild Bill Black brought in a bunch of his movies and showed us the latest trailer [which features me, Big John Beatty, James “The James” Howell, and John Higashi in a cameo – where’s our IMDB listing?] for “The Ghost of Garganta.” Bill also talked about plans for future movies as well as a possible syndicated horror movie package complete with a horror host [the excellent Lon Midnight]!
Big Beatty was sketching away and each one was a winner. He was in the ZONE [and I don’t mean this ZONE… although he IS in it as well]. The Punisher sketch below got a lot of attention from fans, but it was the final sketch of the day, a Joker piece, that won the Best Beatty Sketch of the Show Award.
As always, Keith’s shows are a lot of fun. His next one is scheduled for late October. If you can make it, you should!
JoBlo.com scored an advance look at the poster for “No Country for Old Men” which is based on Cormac McCarthy’s novel of the same name [which I have sitting in my to be read pile].Llewelyn Moss is out hunting when he comes across a pickup truck surrounded by dead men. In the truck he finds a stash of heroin and two million dollars in cash. Moss takes the money and “sets off a chain reaction of catastrophic violence” that results in more murders and Moss on the run.
The screenplay is by Joel Coen [who also directed] and Ethan Coen. “No Country for Old Men” stars Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin and Woody Harrelson. You can see the movie when it opens on November 21, 2007.
Mike Wieringo is one of the nicest and most talented artists you could ever meet. Soft spoken and humble, but oh man, what an artist!
Mike did this drawing of Rocky Balboa for his blog [which I read daily and suggest you do as well]. Mike knew about my Stallone art collection and told me it was mine for the asking when I commented about it.
Check out Mike’s Blog when you have some time to spend. You’ll be amazed and impressed with the amount that he’s posted [but his insightful comments will also be part of what brings you back].
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My buddy, Andy Smith whipped up this cool rendition of Rocky Balboa. Andy is mostly known for his penciling and inking work for DC and Cross Gen comics. But I like to tell people is that when it comes to dynamic drawing, Andy wrote the book. You see, he truly did. Really! You can check it out HERE! You can also check out Andy’s site by clicking HERE. – Craig
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Mike Wieringo’s drawing of Jack Carter is one of my favorite pieces from this year’s Heroes Con. I not only love the look and attitude of the piece, but I was able to watch Mike sketch it!
Mike was selling his latest sketch book and if you bought a copy, Mike threw in a head sketch for free! Talk about a great deal. I was worried that because Stallone isn’t a character that Mike had drawn repeatedly, it might be more difficult and therefore he might decline my request. Boy, was I wrong. Mike proceeded to sketch it out in no time and like I said, he really captured the look and attitude of Sly as Jack Carter.
In my previous post, I suggested you check out Mike’s Blog. I should have remembered to tell you about where you can buy Mike Wieringo original art. Now you have all the facts and links you need.
Enjoy!
Hard to believe, but it’s been almost a year since the last regular issue of The Goon appeared. That’s about to change as Eric Powell, Goon creator, writer, and artist is back, baby!
William Shatner, one of the stars of ABC’s “Boston Legal” [which is on my “Must See TV” list] has agreed to host a celebrity-interview show for the Biography Channel. “Shatner’s Raw Nerve” will be a 30 minute showcase for Shatner to interview guests ranging from politicians to actors [now there’s a stretch]. So how will this differ from other interview shows? William Shatner “will explore life’s most intriguing questions and unearth his guests’ strange and unknown stories.” Thirteen episodes have been ordered and will begin airing in 2008.
I gotta tell ya, I’ll tune in just to hear Shatner’s view on things. So beam me aboard.
What do you do?… when one of your favorite comic book creators [Matt Wagner] loves a character [Zorro] so much that he contacts the company that has just gotten the rights to said character [Dynamite – the same company bringing us Clint Eastwood’s The Man with No Name] and offers them his services as cover artist for the series?What do you do?… when the company [Dynamite] counters with an offer for the creator [Matt Wagner] to not only provide the covers, but to come on board as the art director for the series and to write the first storyline?
Give up?
Here’s what you do: 1] You post the info on your blog. 2] You post a link to Matt Wagner’s website where they can see the full Zorro drawing that he did long before learning about the new gig. 3] You tell your local comic shop owner to keep his eye out for the new Zorro series coming from Dynamite and Matt Wagner and 4] You promise to quit asking so many questions.
