Funny Pages: If these Saturn people are real...

The Haiku of the Ancient Sub-Mariner



By Evan Dorkin.Click through for the punch line.

Tegra, Jungle Empress vs the Soldiers from Saturn



[The Comic Book Catacombs]

The Brain-Bats of Venus



Basil Wolverton is usually too weird for my taste, but in this story it works really, really well. [Golden Age Comic Book Stories]

Certified!

Thank you very much to Siskoid who presented me with the very cool Certified Geek Award. It's a bit more complicated to pass on than the typical tag-awards you usually see, which makes it that much more special to me.

The rules for passing it on, according to the Award's Official Blog, are:

1. Go to Certified Geek and make sure that the blog you're giving it to hasn't already received the award.
2. Create a post on your blog announcing the two blogs you've decided to award.
3. In that post, include the official graphic.
4. Provide a link to the two blogs.
5. Tell why you've chosen the two blogs
6. Include the URL for the award blog (http://certifiablygeekblogs.blogspot.com/)
7. Email Jon K at waffyjon at comcast dot net with the above information, plus what category you think the blog fits in (so he can label it accordingly). If the blog fits more than one category, you should include them all (for example, if the Random Acts of Geekery were awarded this -- which it can't, because none of his blogs are eligible to win -- the categories would be comics, toys, cartoons, sci-fi, Star Trek, monster movies, etc.)
8. Contact the two blogs that you've awarded, tell them about the Certified Geek blog, as well as where they can find the post in which they were awarded. You can do this by emailing the bloggers (if that's possible) or by leaving a comment in a recent post.

The only other rule is that you can't give the award to the same blogger at the same time, even if they have more than one certifiably geek blog! However, if you have more than one blog, and each of them receives the award from different people, you can feel free to award the same blogger (but a different blog) from each of your own blogs!

So, my two awards (and this was very tough):

1. Calvin's Canadian Cave of Coolness: Brother Calvin brings the blogging in a way that puts me to shame. Not only does he blog about geek stuff more than anyone else I know, he's consistently funny and entertaining while doing it. Plus, there's that whole Cephalopod-Menace Watchdog service that he provides. He's created a world filled with geek culture and I love visiting it.

2. Bully Says: Comics Oughta Be Fun!: Bully's another prolific blogger, but what I like most about him is his focus on the fun of comics. There's lots to get angry and frustrated about in the comics world, but Bully celebrates the positive in a way that's fresh and clever instead of just "Yay Rah Team Comics." He also celebrates Keira Knightley, which proves his impeccable aptitude for discernment. For all of that, he deserves undying admiration.

Thanks again to Siskoid for the recognition and to Jon K from Random Acts of Geekery for inventing the cool award.

Elsewhere on the Internets...

Here's what else I've been up to online lately...

Gorillas Riding Dinosaurs



Last week's column was all about the best-looking adventure comics coming out in April. There was an extraordinary amount of DC and Marvel in the list this time, but also some Robin Hood, an 18th century monster-hunter, ghost-busting pets, and of course Turf and Kill Shakespeare, both of which I've mentioned here before.

I also got ribbed in the comments for leaving out some stuff by a particular publisher, which is okay. That's part of the deal when you write a column like that. I actually like a lot of stuff that Dynamite publishes, even though none of their solicitations for this April particularly grabbed me. I think it's probably time too I remind folks that that list focuses on first issues and bookshelf volumes.

One thing I shouldn't have left out though was the second volume in First Second's Olympians series. I read the first volume after I compiled that list and reviewed it for this week's column.



If you don't feel like clicking to the actual review, the short version is that it's best take I've ever seen on Greek mythology in any medium, that's it's revived my interest in the subject matter, and that I can't wait for the eleven sequels that George O'Connor's planning. You should totally buy it.

Robot Review



This isn't exactly adventure-related (though there are some strong fantasy elements to some of the stories), but I also reviewed Fehed Said's very good anthology about the need for human connection, Talking to Strangers.

The Brothers Bloom

I tend to think that I like con-artist movies, but maybe I really don’t. I love The Sting – though it’s been decades since I’ve seen it – and I could be letting my opinion of that movie influence my attitude toward the whole genre. The thing I remember about The Sting though is that pretty much everyone in it wants to be involved in the shenanigans of the plot. Everyone’s trying to outsmart each other, so you don’t really feel bad when someone gets hurt. Most likely, he deserves it.

That’s not the way it is in a lot of con movies though, The Brothers Bloom included. I have a hard time enjoying the cleverness of the con-artists when innocent people are being hurt.

That said, this is certainly one of the better con movies I’ve seen. It’s clever, funny, and gorgeously shot with a fantastic use of color and composition. It’s a work of art. It’s just that from a story-telling perspective, you figure out pretty soon how it’s going to have to end (about fifteen minutes into the movie, actually) and the rest of the time you’re just waiting to see how it’s going to get there. Because it’s so clever, funny, and pretty, you don’t mind that for most of the film. But because it’s two hours long, you get a little antsy during the last half-hour and wish that they’d just go ahead and wrap it up.

Three out of five beautiful, quirky, Lamborghini-driving heiresses.

Edge of Darkness

Although there are some cool fights and action sequences in it, Edge of Darkness wasn’t an action film like I’d hoped for. It was however a really nice little Film Noir mystery. By the time you get to the end of it, you realize that the mystery isn’t all that complicated and you’ve already seen the plot in a bunch of other thrillers, but that didn’t matter that much to me. What mattered was that as Mel Gibson was running around trying to figure out who killed his daughter, I cared about what happened to him.

I cared that Gibson’s relationship with his daughter hadn’t been all that great lately. I cared about his grief and his memories of her. I wanted him to find out who killed her and wasn’t sure how he was going to. I was pretty sure he was never going to find peace, but I sure wanted to see him find justice. I got totally sucked up into his character and didn’t even care that much that the trailer had given me all the clues I needed to solve the mystery. I just wanted to see him solve it.

That’s mostly due to the acting, I suppose, and not only Gibson’s. Unlike a lot of mysteries and thrillers, when characters in The Edge of Darkness talk about being scared, I believed them. Just about everyone in the movie looks frightened out of his or her mind and that made the threat to Gibson’s character that much more menacing. Most of all though, Gibson does a great job. I already tend to like his performances, but I didn’t even mind his Boston accent. He could have really overdone it, but he lets you believe he’s from Boston without being annoying.

There are some things I don’t like about the movie, the biggest of which I can’t talk about without spoiling the end, but if you like Mel Gibson’s work at all – especially the vulnerability he brings to otherwise hard-case heroes – this is a welcome, emotional return for him.


Four out of five Blofeldian headquarters.

Hello, Off the Map. I hope you're awesome.

If you've been reading this blog for a long time, you may remember that back in the day I used to occasionally squeeze Grey's Anatomy news in under the subject: Stuff Nobody Cares About But Me. I'm still a big fan of the show, I've just managed to control the urge to talk about it here.

But because I'm sure it's a top priority for her, Grey's creator Shonda Rhimes has figured out how to get more Adventureblog attention for one of her medical dramas: set it on a tropical island.

Movie News: Captain America, a witch-hunter, Frankenstien, and Adele

Captain America



Director Joe Johnston's cashed in some of Marvel Studios' goodwill by releasing some silly-sounding details about his vision for the Captain America movie. Most of it's just fine - casting an unknown in the lead role, setting the bulk of the story in WWII Europe, making Red Skull the main villain, etc. - but there's one bit that's pretty terrifying.

After he’s made into this super-soldier, they decide they can’t send him into combat and risk him getting killed. He’s the only one and they can’t make more. So they say, ‘You’re going to be in this USO show’ and they give him a flag suit.

Really. The US government creates the ultimate super-soldier, so instead of putting him into battle they have him doing USO shows? Johnston goes on to say that Cap goes AWOL from the USO in order to fight and "covers up the suit," but then realizes it's a symbol for the troops and allows him to become a leader. He covers up the suit? He can't just take it off?

I realize that I've now become that guy who hates on a movie that he hasn't yet seen, but nothing about this USO idea sounds any damn good. Still, there's a long way to go before the film's made and plenty of time to trash the idea. And who knows? Maybe they can pull off a singing, dancing Captain America better than I think they can.

Still... scary.

Season of the Witch



Speaking of scary, I kind of like this trailer for Nicholas Cage's Season of the Witch. It starts off looking like a horror movie, but turns into something more like a supernatural adventure. It's Nicholas Cage playing a knight, so it could be Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves meets Van Helsing, but I'm hoping it can be more like Brotherhood of the Wolf.

I, Frankenstein



Kevin Grevioux's Frankenstein movie has been greenlit. Back when it was first announced they were calling it an action story where the modern-day Monster carries guns and fights other famous monsters like vampires, werewolves, mummies, goblins, and ghosts. Grevioux is the creator of Underworld and the director for I, Frankenstein is the same guy who directed Underworld: Rise of the Lycans, so if you like those movies - which I do - this one sounds promising too.

Les Aventures Extraordinaires d'Adele Blanc-Sec: Second Trailer



Now with mummies!

Quote of the Week: Royale with Cheese

[John Travolta's character in From Paris with Love is] in superb condition, especially for a guy whose favorite food is Cheese Royales. That's a little joke reminding us of Pulp Fiction, and the last thing you should do is remind the audience of a movie they'd rather be home watching.

--Roger Ebert, keeping my expectations low for the only movie coming out this week that I think I can sit through.

Art Show: Hot Blue Catwomen

The Little Mermaid



Artist Unknown [Animation Backgrounds]

Pirate Girls



By Richard Sala.

Cave Batman



By Andy Kubert. [The Source]

Zorro



By Francesco Francavilla.

Captain America



By Steve Epting.

Sherlock Holmes



By Francesco Francavilla.

Zatanna



By Stephane Roux.



By Ms. Mars.

John Carter



By Larry Ivie. [Golden Age Comic Book Stories]

Daughter of Pandora



By Grant Gould.

Comics News: Prose, Poetry, and Perversion

I've been a baaaad blogger this week. I'm sorry about that.

Sailor Twain, or The Mermaid in the Hudson



Mark Siegel's First Second Books is one of my favorite publishers. The comics they publish have fun, interesting concepts presented by unique, high-quality writers and artists. I don't think I've read a single book by them that I didn't care for, so it's no surprise that I'm also enjoying Siegel's own webcomic. Especially since it's about a riverboat captain and - if the title is to be believed - a mermaid.

The Monster in the Mist and other stories



Golden Age Comic Book Stories has a whole mess of Al Williamson adventure stories, a couple of which (like the one pictured above and another about a submarine crew trying to trace Captain Nemo's voyage) are sea-based.

Pennyfarthing Press' new website



Pennyfarthing doesn't publish a lot of books, but I like the ones they do. Especially the undersea adventures of a mermaid, a kraken, an electric fish, and the daughter of the Loch Ness Monster in The Loch. There's also the pulpy Captain Gravity, the steampunk/superheroey Victorian, and a new adventure series about Middle Eastern mythology called Anne Steelyard. Anyway, they just launched a new website and it's worth browsing around to see what they've got.

Nevermore and other Steve Niles news



Steve Niles recently posted a couple of updates on his message board about some very cool sounding projects. One is Nevermore a comics adaptation of Dennis Paoli's one-man play about Edgar Allan Poe. The book will be illustrated by multiple artists including Bernie Wrightson.

Other projects include Mystery Society (which Steve describes as "a bit more action oriented [than his usual gory stuff] with lots of creatures and unexplained phenomena"), Edge of Doom (with Kelley Jones), and Doc Macabre (with Wrightson again). Also lots of updates on film adaptations of his comics, including Dark Days, which Steve says is in the editing stage.

Movie News: Cold Warrior, Mother, and Atomic Robo

Cold Warrior



I'm going to see Edge of Darkness tomorrow night and I'm really looking forward to seeing Mel Gibson in front of the camera and kicking butt again. There's more coming too. He's just signed on to play a Cold War spy who comes out of retirement to help a young agent fight a Russian terrorist in Shane Black's (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang) next movie.

Mother



The trailer for this looks really good. The lead actress looks so harmless until her obsession over proving her son's innocence in a murder case leads her to... well, just watch the trailer. Scary.

Atomic Robo: The Cartoon



The world's not ready for this much awesome, but it's coming anyway.