Previews and Reviews that are Z's Views
The trailer for “Wolverine” is now on-line and can be seen in all it’s glory here. I have to admit, that it doesn’t look half bad.
Variety has announced that “Stephen Norrington has signed on to write and direct a reinvention of “The Crow,” based on the comic created by James O’Barr.” Norrington is best known as the director of “Blade” [which most folks liked and I didn’t care for] and “The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen” [which was almost universally panned, and I enjoyed].
Since I’m a fan of the original comic by J. O’Barr, I’m happy to see the character return to the big screen. Let’s hope that this “reinvention” is more like “League” than “Blade.”
The last time I mentioned Jeff Somers here at the ZONE, it was in praise of his second Avery Cates novel, The Digital Plague. I know it’s hard to believe, but I enjoyed The Digital Plague just a bit better than The Electric Church [which I loved].You could also hang out at Jeff’s blog where he regularly posts and interacts with fans. [I guess you could hang out there even if you didn’t read his books, but if Jeff found out he’d probably send his winged monkeys after you. So if you choose to do that, you do so at your own peril. You have been warned!]
Author James Reasoner really enjoyed the Batman: Vampire compilation. [Of course what’s not to love when it’s written by Doug Moench with art by Kelly Jones and John Beatty?] Here are a few quotes from the review:
This is classic Batman with a horror spin… Doug Moench was one of my favorite comics writers… His scripts on these three Batman stories are excellent, with plenty of action and angst… the artwork in this collection by Kelley Jones reminds me a little of Gulacy’s work, as well as Berni Wrightson’s… I’m glad I was able to catch up to these three stories all in one book, and if you’re a Batman and/or horror fan, I think you’ll enjoy them, too.
You can check out Reasoner’s full review here and the Batman: Vampire compilation here.
Disney World is a magical park. They say it’s the happiest place on earth. Soon it will be even more fun! [Thanks and a tip of my mouse ears to Mark Evanier!]
Bettie Page, the legendary 1950’s pin-up model has passed away at the age of 85. Ms. Page who quit modeling at the height of her popularity and disappeared from public view [although not our imagination] went on to become a pop culture icon inspiring generations of fans. Fans like Mark Evanier, Christopher Mills, Rafael Kayanan, Steve Thompson, Ivan Shreve have all written remembrances, but they need not worry… Bettie Page will live forever.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to her friends and fans.
I just read over at Ivan Shreve’s site that character actor, Robert Prosky, has died at the age of 77. Mr. Prosky was a star of the stage, television and movies.
I first saw Mr. Prosky in “Thief” [his feature film debut] with James Caan. Mr. Prosky owned every scene he was in. Mr. Prosky worked continuously alternating roles in films, television and stage. He made every thing he was in just a bit, and sometimes a lot better. [And that includes “Eye See You” with Sylvester Stallone.]
Our thoughts and prayers go out to Mr. Prosky’s family, friends and fans.
Back in October of this year I posted a piece about “Dead Irons” the genre bending mini-series about werewolves, vampires and bounty hunters in the old west. Today Newsarama posted a look at some of cover artist Jae Lee’s character sketches and more. I especially liked when “Dead Irons” artist Jason Alexander said:
“This is seriously the darkest book I’ve ever worked on… it’s so well thought out, it really feels like a classic Sergio Leone’ film, with werewolves and vampires.
If you’re a fan of “Frailty” or “Shaun of the Dead” then you might want to check out the three issue mini-series “Killer of Demons” by Chris Yost [writer] and Scott Wegener [artist]. Yost summarizes the series by saying:Dave Sloan, who wakes up to see that there are actual literal demons from hell among us,” he told CBR, “and a heavenly cherub angel is telling him to kill them all. Which he does, with swords, axes, guns and even a pen. But Dave starts to realize that things aren’t necessarily as they seem.
I think the series looks like fun and plan to order it. CBR.com has a preview of the first issue and a brief interview with Yost and Wergner. Check it out and maybe you’ll want to give it a chance too.
If you’re a fan of Ed Brubaker and/or Sean Phillips then here’s something worth checking out — CBR.com has an extensive first look at the premiere issue of INCOGNITO. Before you click over, know that this is for mature audiences!
Despite earlier reports that announced he was ready to, Clint Eastwood 
We’ve been hearing a lot of talk about bailouts lately. [Lord knows I could use one. Bet you could too.] Barack Obama is proposing a bailout. So is President Bush. The problem with both of their proposals is that politics gets in the way, slows things down and gums up the works.
That’s why I’m happy to say that the third fellow pictured above is proposing a different kind of bailout. His name is John Beatty and he’s proposing a Christmas Bailout that is guranteed to help those the bailout is for [namely John and his family] PLUS it offers something back to those doing the bailing [Namely a sweet comission at a really decent price AS WELL AS a free sketchbook should your piece be included]. You can read the full details here.
Man, if only our country’s economic woes could be solved so quickly and with everyone coming out a winnah!
