'Best of TBH Politoons'
Cory!! Strode On Graphic Novels
Brad Metzler
Every week (oh, quit laughing, I've done it two weeks in a row now, so I'm back on track) I try to highlight comics that might appeal to people who don't read comic books. The main reason is because when people look at the comics rack, if they don't follow creators, it's hard to pick out something good, much like when you go into a mystery book store and try to buy a crime novel without knowing anything about the genre. The second reason is because I feel that comics are underappreciated and publishers need to work harder to get them in front of people who don't run to the comic shop every Wednesday to get their latest stack of books.
Comic book publishers are working to try and create comics that people who don't read comics might be interested in as well, and the biggest release of the last couple of months is a hardcover graphic novel called "Identity Crisis", which was written by novelist Brad Metzler. Meltzer has written best-selling novels "Dead Even," "First Council" and "Zero Hour" as well as being one of the creators of last year's TV series "Jack and Bobby." He had written issues of the "Green Arrow" comic series, but Identity Crisis was his first attempt at a massive 7 issue mini-series that tied in with major DC series like Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman.
It was a huge sales success and has now been collected in a hardcover that is getting a push in major book stores, so you will probably see it the next time you go into your local bookseller.
As you flip through the book, you'll notice that there are a lot of characters and a lot of fight scenes, but the heart of the story is a mystery as the spouse of s upper-hero is killed, and the rest of the super-heroes attempt to find the killer as well as deal with the repercussions of both the murder, and the dark secret the murder has revealed. The next thing you'll notice is just how well the art fits the story. Rags Morales was not a "big name" artist when he started work on the series, but his ability to keep the story flowing, and ability to portray complex emotions on costumed characters keeps the story from seeming either silly or overwrought.
The story, on the other hand, is one that I have some issues with. Part of my problem is that Metzler is an accomplished mystery writer, but if you are a mystery fan of any kind, you'll be able to guess the killer within the first 50 pages. For people who hadn't read a lot of mystery novels, the main plot will come off as a bit of a shock, and there were enough red herrings to keep the average reader guessing, but if you've read a few novels in the genre, the core plot is very much by the numbers. The other problem I had was that the story demands that characters that have been used in light stories aimed at younger readers are used in a serious, dramatic mature plot. In some ways, it almost reads as if a character from "Saved By The Bell" were shoehorned into an episode of "The Sopranos". DC has more than enough characters that are suitable for use in stories aimed at mature readers, and their use in a story like this just doesn't work for me.
The other problem casual readers will have is that by the middle of the story, the series was crossing over with other DC comics, so events happen that aren't followed up on in the story itself, making the plot feel crowded with scenes that don't quite fit or have no conclusion in the story. The side story about the "dark secret" revealed by the murder also does not have a satisfying conclusion, as it has been the basis for the last year's worth of DC Comics stories leading up to this year's big crossover "Infinite Crisis". The main mystery is solved, but there are so many dangling plot threads that the story seems more like the pilot to a new series than self-contained story.
For comic book fans, this story was a big deal, and every issue was the best selling comic of the month they came out. I thought it was a very well-told story where the plot wasn't any good, but among comics fans, I'm a distinct minority. However, for casual readers, it's just too confusing and dependent upon a strong knowledge of comic book history going all the way back to the 1960's, and if you want to read a comic series that features most of DC's characters and reads like a Big Deal, pick up "Kingdom Come" because this book only gets a 2 out of 5.
Cory!! Strode (The Best Dressed Man In Comics) has written comic books, novels, jokes for comedians, Op Ed columns, the on-line comic strip
www.Asylumon5thstreet.com and has all kinds of things on his website, www.solitairerose.com
Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Kurt Vonnegut: Your Guess Is as Good as Mine (inthesetimes.com)
Most of you, if not all of you, like me, feel inadequately educated. That is an ordinary feeling for a member of our species. One of the most brilliant human beings of all times, George Bernard Shaw said on his 75th birthday or so that at last he knew enough to become a mediocre office boy.
Donnie Fowler: Green or Red? Gore's Passion on Global Warming (huffingtonpost.com)
* Of more than 600 peer-reviewed research publications, not a single one has disputed the view that global warming is real and measurable, but 53% of media stories continue to refer to global warming as an issue that is in dispute.
Ellen Goodman: It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas (workingforchange.com)
Some years ago my husband was a last-minute draft pick to play the role of godfather at a young friend's naming ceremony. Admittedly, his relationship to organized religion was a bit dicey, but you know how it is in the understudy business. In any case, at the end of the home ceremony, he leaned over and stage-whispered into the ear of the infant the promise that her training as a Druid would now commence.
Lew Rockwell: Celebrate Christmas, or Else! (huffingtonpost.com)
Sex on Sunday was out of the question. This was particularly a problem for children born on Sunday, because Puritans believed that people were born on the same day on which they were conceived. They were sometimes denied baptism for this reason. A minister name Israel Loring was very strict in this regard until his own wife gave birth to twins in Sunday.
Earl Ofari Hutchinson: Losing Richard Pryor (AlterNet.org)
Richard Pryor was an equal-opportunity audience baiter who paved the way for today's biggest comedians by putting race relations at the center of his art.
Scott Renshaw: Monkey Shines (altweeklies.com)
The face of the 25-foot-tall ape in Peter Jackson's King Kong isn't what we've come to expect from computer-generated creations. A network of scars crisscrosses his brows; one canine tooth appears to have been broken off. Even his jaw seems to slope to one side, perhaps another remnant of some long-ago battle. In the past, it has been enough for special effects to convince us that something exists. Jackson has something more complicated in mind-he wants us to believe that Kong has lived.
Hubert's Poetry Corner
WAITING FOR STEVE McQUEEN
Freshly Updated
Southern Gothic Online
Southern Gothic Online is now publishing on an almost weekly basis. Please stop by and take a look. A new story by New Orleans writer Catharine Savage Brosman just posted, as well as new poetry by Daryl Rogers and Terri Light.
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Sunny & brisk.
Here's a Complete List of Golden Globe Nominations
No new flags.
Kazakhs Pull Plug Web Site
Borat
The authorities in Kazakhstan, angered by a British comedian's satirical portrayal of a boorish, sexist and racist Kazakh television reporter, have pulled the plug on his alter ego's Web site.
Sacha Baron Cohen plays Borat in his "Da Ali G Show" and last month he used the character's Web site to respond sarcastically to legal threats from the Central Asian state's Foreign Ministry.
A government-appointed organization regulating Web sites that end in the .kz domain name for Kazakhstan confirmed on Tuesday it had suspended Cohen's site.
Borat is one of several outrageous characters devised by Cohen in his television shows. He shot to fame as Ali G, who mocks British street gang culture, and also plays Bruno, a gay Austrian fashion show presenter.
Borat
NBC Cuts Pole Dance Video
Pamela Anderson
Pamela Anderson and pole dancing proved too hot for NBC, which dropped a number featuring the actress in a sexy big-screen video from an Elton John special.
"Elton John: The Red Piano," a Las Vegas extravaganza taped at Caesars Palace, aired Monday night without the segment in which John sang "The Bitch is Back" while an oversized screen behind him displayed a scantily clad Anderson.
The actress moved suggestively around a dance pole in the number, which was included in preview copies sent out to critics.
After an assessment by its standards and practices department the network decided the material didn't mesh with the time slot.
Pamela Anderson
Free Concert In Rio
Rolling Stones
Rock legends the Rolling Stones will play a free concert on Rio de Janeiro's famed Copacabana Beach in February, organizers said on Tuesday, and up to 1.5 million people are expected to attend.
"City Hall considers this show to be like another New Year. We will treat it like that," Ana Maria Maia, a Rio official for special events, told a news conference.
Up to 1.5 million people traditionally gather on Copacabana Beach to celebrate New Year's Eve and organizers said they expected a similar number for the February 18 show.
Rolling Stones
Closing in December
James Dean Museum
A museum chronicling the short life of "Rebel Without a Cause" star James Dean will close Dec. 31.
Owner David Loehr moved the James Dean Gallery to Gas City from Fairmount, where Dean attended high school, less than two years ago.
Although attendance had increased, it wasn't enough to match the cost of maintaining the temperature-controlled building, Loehr said Monday.
A June festival in Marion marking the 50th anniversary of Dean's death drew about 6,000 people instead of the 100,000 organizers had expected. The annual James Dean Fest in September went on as scheduled.
James Dean Museum
Turns Up At Sci Fi Channel
'Night Stalker'
Sci Fi Channel has acquired all 10 episodes of ABC's short-lived series remake of "Night Stalker," the cable network said Monday.
In addition to the seven episodes that aired this fall on ABC, Sci Fi will premiere three never-before-seen episodes of the supernatural drama, which stars Stuart Townsend and Gabrielle Union. "Night Stalker," inspired by the original movie and series, is set to launch on Sci Fi in the summer.
'Night Stalker'
Hosting Weekly Radio Show
Bob Dylan
Legendary folk rocker Bob Dylan will start a new career as a radio DJ when he launches a new weekly music show on XM Satellite Radio next March.
The station said on Tuesday the show would feature music hand-picked by Dylan, writer of some of the enduring classics of popular music since the 1960s such as "Mr Tambourine Man," "Like a Rolling Stone" and "The Times They Are A-Changin'."
XM says it has more than 5 million subscribers.
Bob Dylan
Named 'Ambassadors Of Conscience'
U2
The members of U2 and their manager Paul McGuinness have been given the Ambassador Of Conscience Award by Amnesty International. Irene Khan, who is the Secretary General of the human-rights organization, said, "From Live Aid in 1985 and Amnesty International's 1986 Conspiracy Of Hope tour, through to Live 8 this past July, U2 has arguably done more than any other band to highlight the cause of global human rights in general and Amnesty International's work in particular. Their leadership in linking music to the struggle for human rights and human dignity worldwide has been ground-breaking and unwavering. They have inspired and empowered millions with their music and by speaking out on behalf of the poor, the powerless, and the oppressed."
The Ambassador Of Conscience Award "recognizes exceptional individual leadership and witness in the fight to protect and promote human rights."
U2
Dines With Jesse Helms
Bono
Bono and Jesse Helms?
Not only are they friends, but the Irish rocker and archconservative former North Carolina senator also share a common cause: fighting AIDS in Africa.
Before U2 opened to a raucous crowd of 17,000 at the city's new downtown arena, Bono had dinner with Helms.
Helms, who is 84 and suffers from a number of serious health problems, arrived backstage before the show and was joined by Bono for a casual meal. On the menu: grilled chicken, roast beef and salmon.
Bono
Student Wins Battle
Anti-Bush T-Shirt
A Pennsylvania student is off the hook after the American Civil Liberties Union defended his right to wear a political T-shirt to school.
Chris Schiano's T-shirt said "International Terrorist" and had a picture of resident Bush.
A security guard at his high school north of Philadelphia told him to take it off. He refused.
The principal says after hearing from the ACLU, school officials realized that the shirt, while potentially offensive, didn't violate the school's dress code. It had no references to sex, drugs, ethnic intimidation or explicit language.
Anti-Bush T-Shirt
Europeans Outraged
$chwarzenegger
The execution of convicted killer Stanley Tookie Williams sparked outrage Tuesday throughout Europe, which has a deep aversion to capital punishment sustained by the painful memory of state-organized murder during the Nazi era.
The disappointment was particularly strong in Austria, native country of Gov. Arnold $chwarzenegger, where many had hoped the former bodybuilder and film star would spare the 51-year-old Williams.
Leaders of Austria's opposition Green Party even called for $chwarzenegger to be stripped of his Austrian citizenship - a demand rejected by Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel as "absurd" despite his government's opposition to the death penalty.
Six decades after World War II, opposition to the death penalty remains deeply entrenched in Germany and Austria, a stance resulting from remorse for the evils committed by these countries under Adolf Hitler and an attempt to prevent future state-sponsored killing.
$chwarzenegger
Do-Not-Call Violations
DirecTV
DirecTV Inc. will pay $5.35 million to settle charges that its telemarketers called households listed on the national do-not-call registry to pitch satellite TV programming, Federal Trade Commission officials said Tuesday.
The proposed settlement, if approved by a federal judge in Los Angeles, would be the FTC's largest civil penalty in a consumer protection case.
On Monday, in an unrelated case, DirecTV Inc. promised to reimburse unhappy customers and to make its advertised offers clearer, according to a settlement reached with 22 states over deceptive marketing complaints.
DirecTV
Guilty of Conflict of Interest
Jeff Habay
A western Pennsylvania lawmaker has been convicted of making his legislative staff do political campaign work on state time.
The felony conviction of conflict of interest means state Rep. Jeff Habay, 39, a six-term Republican from Allegheny County, will lose his state pension and could be removed from office by the Legislature.
He also could face punishment ranging from probation to 15 months in prison, prosecutors said. Sentencing was set for Jan. 30.
Habay faces a second trial next year on 21 counts that allege he concocted a story about receiving a suspicious white powder in the mail and directed his staff to investigate his adversaries on state time.
Jeff Habay
In Memory
Robert F. Newmyer
Robert F. Newmyer, a prolific independent film producer whose credits include "Training Day" and "The Santa Clause" movies, has died. He was 49.
Newmyer died Monday of a heart attack while he was working out at a gym in Toronto, his friends said.
Newmyer started off as a vice president of production and acquisitions at Columbia Pictures. He and Jeffrey Silver formed Outlaw Productions in the late 1980s, which was named after Newmyer's favorite Clint Eastwood character, the outlaw Josey Wales.
They hit it big with "sex, lies and videotape" in 1989 and the company took off when it produced "The Santa Clause" in 1994.
This year, Newmyer mortgaged his homes in Los Angeles and Telluride, Colo., to raise $3 million to finance "Phat Girlz," a romantic comedy about an aspiring plus-size fashion designer starring MoNique Imes-Jackson. Fox Searchlight Pictures acquired the film, which is scheduled to be released in April.
Newmyer is survived by his wife, Deborah, and his children, Sofi, Teddy, James and Billi.
Robert F. Newmyer
| CURRENT MOON lunar phases |
