Tim Drake and DC Comics

Shhh, Tim Drake was never Robin

DC Comics has always been my favorite publisher.  Their characters were awesome, and I always, without fail, loved reading the exploits of their universe.  Don't get me wrong, Marvel has so much incredible stuff in it, but DC was what I latched onto as a kid.  So, I kept buying, and buying, and buying more.

Until now.

When DC launched their New 52, it was an awesome opportunity to bring in new readers.  The DC universe was relaunched!  As opposed to starting just with a new batch of number 1 issues, they literally started things from the beginning.  Superman was brand new again!  The Justice League was meeting for the first time!

Some titles didn't start from scratch.  The Batman titles and Green Lantern, for example, all carried over SOME continuity from the "old" DC universe, pre-Flashpoint.  Flashpoint was the storyline that brought the world into the New 52.

The disadvantage of being a lifelong DC fan is the company's odd need to continue to reboot their universe.  I've always prided myself on being flexible, adapting, and even embracing a lot of the changes in a DC universe that reboots approximately every 9 weeks.  I've also always prided myself on my odd need to exaggerate.

The thing is, the core characters always retained their back stories, even if there were minor changes here and there.  Even the New 52 had so many bright spots.  Aquaman was awesome for the first time since...oh, I don't know, EVER.  Nightwing was a great read, etc.  Not all was bad.

This brings me to Tim Drake.  It seems that he was never a Robin in the new universe.  Even though he was actually referenced as a former Robin in a New 52 Bat-comic.  That, and a few other continuity blunders in the new universe, made me feel like these changes were pretty half-assed.  Change for the sake of change is stupid.  That's what the New 52 started to feel like.  Especially when the greatest Robin there was, turns out he was never a Robin to begin with.

Drake is a character who, in his debut, deduces who Batman and Robin are, and sets out to convince Nightwing that Batman needs a Robin.  Nightwing was pretty much saying "Been there done that".  Tim Drake ended up impressing Batman enough that he eventually took up the mantle of Robin.  Drake didn't want to be Robin because his parents were gunned down, or killed in some bizarre way.  He idolized the concept of Batman and Robin.  It was truly a great origin.  Pretty different from the usual tragic circumstances that caused most heroes to don their spandex.

In an attempt to push Damien Wayne down our throat, we get to pretend that Drake was never a Robin.

Yeah, I'm probably bitter a little about this change.  I can admit that.  I can also admit that there was some cool stuff being put out in the New 52.  DC Comics treatment of not only their characters, but their creators, has become too much to stomach.

The good news?  I have almost 20,000 comics that I can re-read.  The movies are always fun.  The family and I had a Batman marathon (Christopher Nolan films) last weekend, and that was amazing.

As a result of my current state of collecting, I have decided that this blog...WILL CONTINUE!  I know, all 2 of you are excited.  Next update will look back at a Marvel/DC crossover. 

Nightwing #1-9

Hi, kids. 

Nightwing.  The mere mention of him makes me think about this.  It also makes me think about reading 9 issues of Nightwing all in one sitting.  

Without getting into spoiler-type review writing, I am going to keep this simple.  Nightwing is an excellent comic.  Great characterization, great art, and great storytelling.  Written by Kyle Higgins, and drawn by Eddy Barrows and Andres Guinaldo, they are taking Nightwing into some interesting territory.  The first arc spans 7 issues, and deals with Dick Grayson inheriting Haly's Circus.  He explores his history, and gets to experience a little betrayal thrown in for good measure.

Barbara Gordon, back as Batgirl, makes an appearance in the story, and the dynamic between her and Dick is always fun to read.  If any two characters in comics should be a "couple", it's these two.

Issues 8 and 9 deal with the big Bat-crossover "Night of the Owls".  Thankfully, the stories were self-contained to Nightwing, as opposed to buying 73 other Bat-titles to know what in the hell was going on.  Night of the Owls is another look into the Grayson family, and Dick gets to meet a long lost relative.  

Excellent stuff, to be sure.  My only complaint, and it's a small one, is the costume.  Replacing the lighter blue accent is a red one, and while it doesn't look bad, the blue was better, in my opinion.  Again, who really cares?  The art and story is excellent.

5 out of 5 circus freaks.

Comic Shops, Volume II

Greetings, fine people of the internet!  Last time we (I) talked about Comic Book stores.  Specifically Dragon's Lair in Omaha.  Since I no longer live in Omaha, I have to find someplace that will keep my addiction alive.  Here in central Iowa, you may assume I am talking about crystal meth, but it's a comic blog, after all.  

When I moved away from Omaha, I went to Amarillo, Texas, and found a nice store, Big Apple Comics.  Great store, and had everything I needed being away from home.  From Amarillo back to Omaha for a short time, and then off to Bloomington, Indiana.  We lived there for only a year, and I cannot remember the store's name.  A search on the internet shows a downtown store called Vintage Phoenix Comic Books.  I think that was the place.  I remember it being dark.

In 1999, we finally settled in West Des Moines, Iowa.  Naturally, my first task was to find a suitable comic shop.  Apartment hunting and groceries could wait.  I found Dragon Fire Comics in Clive, Iowa.  The Des Moines area consists of Des Moines and about 693 different towns that all hang out with Des Moines...Clive being one of them.  I went there for years, and they closed up.  Little did I know that Mayhem Comics and Games was just down the road.

I am not sure what was first, the Ames location or the one in Clive, but I think we should all just be happy they are there.  I have not been to the Ames location because I don't live there.  Pretty simple strategy, really.  I don't frequent comic stores in Pakistan or Tibet, either.  I cannot begin to tell you how glad I am I frequent Mayhem.

Stolen logo from the internet

Let's start with the store.  Spacious, CLEAN (which is why my wife will go in with me), and just full of new comics, trade paperbacks, and a decent stock of back issues keep me interested.  They have a TV set up in the shop that always has something awesome on, whether it is a comic or sci-fi film, it is always just nice to hear it as I shop.  

Let me stop right here for a minute for one of my typical sidebars (I will keep this one short): whoever came up with "syfy" (cable channel) needs to be beaten within an inch of their life.  I'll gladly help.  The channel is fine, but don't get all cutesy with your channel name.  

Sorry.  Back to my favorite place in central Iowa.  If you are a gamer, which I am not, there is a HUGE game room attached to the store, and there is always activity there.  They do have a wide selection of games, from Magic: The Gathering, Dungeons & Dragons, a lot of other RPG's, and a ton of different board games.  In short, it doesn't get much better than this.  Magic is actually a great game, and I play it on my Xbox360 with my good friend Marcus.  I have to be honest, I'd like to play at Mayhem, but my problem is I am not that competitive and do not care at all if I win or lose, I just like to play.  Some of these guys look like they take their gaming pretty seriously.

Okay, so we have established that the content of the store is varied and extremely awesome, what about the service?  Sadly, I only know one name, Jeremy.  He is super nice, approachable, and will chat with you.  While I may not know the names of the other guys (or gals) that work there, they have always been great, and that is much more important than anything else.  Service keeps me coming back every single week, and the service is 7 out of 5 stars.  

I have been going there since Dragon Fire shut down, and will go there as long as I am able.  This store gets it right in every aspect, and am glad to be able to give them my hard-earned cash.

On Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/mayhemcomics and on the web you can find them at http://www.mayhemcomics.com/ so visit the links, and more importantly, visit the store.  

Next blog: Nightwing!

Comic Shops, Volume I

In the 1970's, the only place I knew of to get comics was the 7-11 a few blocks away.  There I could get my fix of Green Lantern, Batman, and the Fantastic Four.  If I had extra allowance I would throw in some Spider-Man.  We left Omaha for another town, and my comics mysteriously vanished in the move.  Chalk it up to some elaborate scheme involving international terrorists led by some elite sniper named Helmut.  It's been many years, but I will have my revenge.

Anyway, when I was 20, a guy at work and I were talking comics, and I was reminiscing while he was talking all about his collection.  At the time, I was heavy into NBA basketball (don't ask me why), and could understand his fanaticism.  He asked me if I had heard of Dragon's Lair.  I hadn't.  In my head I was thinking, "Dude, I don't want to join some quest or anything."

We went over to the Dragon's Lair on Blondo in Omaha.  Life as I knew it got radically more expensive.  Comics everywhere.  New comics, old comics, 25-cent comics, and big giant comics that collected entire stories.  I decided then and there I would risk being single for the rest of my natural life.  Fortunately, my then-girlfriend has since married me, and is STILL with me today.  Do NOT tell her how much of a mistake she has made.  Seriously.

Heaven

I lived in Omaha for years, frequenting Dragon's Lair a minimum of once a week, and spent literally thousands of dollars.  That money is represented in the form of long boxes stored in a remote location where Helmut and his band of nefarious killers will not be able to get to it.

If you are reading this blog, you are either a comic fan, my wife, or some friend or family member who is looking for material to make fun of me with at some point.  If you are a comic fan and are in the Omaha area, I cannot say enough good things about Dragon's Lair.  They now have two locations, and both are excellent resources for all of your comic needs.

If you are looking for something you need, ask for Craig out in the Millard location.  Sadly, after 22 years, I do not know Craig's last name, and if I did, I wouldn't post it here, but a nicer guy cannot be found.  Having moved away, I now frequent another store (I'll review that one in the next installment), but if I am missing anything, or am looking for something, Craig and Dragon's Lair have never let me down.  They have even held stuff for me until I came back to Omaha for a visit. 

I love the shop I go to now, but Dragon's Lair is on my list of things to do when I am back home.  Every time I am back, I will buy something I do not need, just as my own goofy way of saying thanks.  Thanks to Bob at Blondo for the hard work and great place to go read about super-heroes.  Thanks to Craig for always taking the time to talk to customers.  BIG thanks to Craig for introducing me to Mike Grell's run on Green Arrow.  I got to meet Mike Grell a few years ago, and that was excellent.

Go spend money there, now!

Dragon's Lair Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dragons-Lair/53352592547
Dragon's Lair website: http://www.dragons-lair.com/

Comic Book Movies: The Bad

So...let's start with The Avengers.  

Har!  I crack me up.  I loved everything about The Avengers, but am going to use it as an example in this scientific examination of comic book movies and why they can be a little irritating.

Origins and Reboots

The thing that we, the audience, has to know is how and why our hero came to be enamored with costumes.  What is their motivation?  Why are they turning to a life of fighting people who dress like scarred clowns, have Red Skulls, or are named Obidiah Stain?  I mean, Tony Stark is a genius, am I to believe that he did not know that a guy with the name Obidiah Stain was not a douchebag?  Let's be real.

Seriously, I understand the need, especially in a movie, to provide the necessary background to explain the character.  If you want wide appeal, then it is important to follow the old formula.  Let's go out on a limb here.

Everyone knows Batman, Superman, and Spider-Man.  Don't get me wrong, Nolan's Bat-films are awesome, and I have enjoyed them very much, but what pisses me off is what will happen the NEXT time someone wants to make a Batman film.  Prior to Nolan's Batman, George Clooney barely escaped an attempted murder charge when he wore the Bat-suit.  Attempting to kill a beloved pop-culture icon just isn't cool, Clooney.  Now go bang some ridiculously hot model.

The upcoming Spider-Man film looks promising, but if I have to sit through more than an hour of origin re-telling, I am liable to take my shirt off and scare away theater patrons.  Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man movies grossed over 2 BILLION at the box office.  That means just about everyone in a developed nation has seen it.  We know who he is.

The Avengers hit a home run, has been well-received by critics, and guess what?  We didn't sit through what feels like weeks of origin rehashing.  There were tidbits of dialogue that explained it perfectly.  

The Dead Waynes, my new indie band name.

Movie studios assume the audience is stupid, for the most part.  They forget we saw Spider-man 1, 2, and 3.  In 5 years when Batman is rebooted, I am going to have to watch Thomas and Martha get shot.  Again.  These two poor saps have been killed on screen more than anyone.  It's like Groundhog Day.  I wake up every morning and see Bruce Wayne's parents murdered.

Superman Returns was widely considered a failure.  They had the premise, however, right.  They didn't need a one hour expose' on who the hell Superman is.  They just screwed it up by giving Superman a super kid, and having him creep Lois Lane like a crazy stalker.  Had they stopped the movie after the plane rescue at the beginning, I would have said, that was an awesome 20 minute film!!!  

So to all my friends in the movie industry (zero), please take note of The Avengers.  A comic book movie the way it should be.

Comic Book Movies

HELL YES

Hello internet.  Just a couple days away from the domestic premier of The Avengers.  I am extremely excited for this one.  On my iTouch, I have The Incredible Hulk, Captain America, and Thor on my video playlist.  Iron Man is coming.

This movie seems to be getting very positive reviews from critics, as well as fans overseas.  I am ready for the midnight showing, and so is my understanding wife.

In general, comic movies are my favorite, because I am a complete nerd.  At my age, I am completely fine with that.  So let's do a quick rundown of our friends from Marvel's premier super team.

Captain America: If you haven't been reading Brubaker's Cap over in the comics, cast shame upon your house and slice off a pinky or something.  That book is consistently amazing.  As a character, Cap is kind of the boy scout, with a Superman-esque attitude and idealism.  In the Captain America movie, Chris Evans did an excellent job playing Johnny Storm Steve Rogers.  Granted, I was a little hesitant knowing that the part of cap went to Johnny Storm.  That said, I feel like the movie was phenomenal.  Fun stuff!  

The Hulk: After two movies, the Ang Lee disaster and the recent one featuring Edward Norton, we have had what most people would call dismal to mediocre exposure to the Hulk on the big screen.  Personally, I felt that Ang Lee's Hulk was good in parts, but just didn't cut the mustard.  The recent Hulk movie I enjoyed very much.  To each their own.  I have read that Hulk steals every scene he is in.  HULK SMASH.

Thor: Excellence.  The movie was excellent.  Kat Dennings aside, Thor was just one of the most enjoyable comic films I have ever seen.

Yes, there is a higher power.

Iron Man: I can't picture anyone else as Tony Stark.  Robert Downey Jr. is simply amazing in the role.  Iron Man 2 may have had a goofy-ass Mickey Rourke in it, but Downey is a genius, with probably the best verbal delivery this side of Ric Flair.  Huh?!?!

Hawkeye: Our exposure to him was the cameo in Thor.  I hope he blows some shit up with some explosive arrows.

Insanely hot Scarlett Johannson is Black Widow.  Personally I could watch 2 hours of Scarlett taking a nap and feel like I got my money's worth.  Rawr.

Nick Fury: Samuel Jackson finally gets more than one scene!  I hope there are no snakes on any planes.  

I hope this movie does ridiculously well at the box office and is critically acclaimed.  It just helps the genre.  Go see it multiple times.  I know I will.

Next blog: what drives me nuts about comic book movies.  Where there is good, there is also bad.  Very bad.

Green Lantern #1-6

DC Comics' universal relaunch, the New 52, has been very successful.  It allows a lot of people to jump in to comics that they either have had no exposure to, or perhaps some peripheral exposure.  A couple lines of books remain untouched, for the most part.  The Batman and Green Lantern titles still have a lot of the same themes running through the new books that were present prior to the relaunch.

Light spoilers ahead.

Hal Jordan is no longer a Green Lantern, but Sinestro is.  In fact, these first six issues are just as much about Sinestro as they are about Hal Jordan, if not more so.  In a nutshell, Sinestro doesn't want to be Green Lantern, but uses the opportunity to save his home planet of Korugar from his own Corps, the Sinestro Corps.  It turns out our friends in yellow have decided to enslave Korugar, and Sinestro will have none of that action.

He enlists the help of Hal Jordan, who the Guardians kicked out of the Green Lantern Corps.  Sinestro creates a ring for Hal, but the kicker is that Sinestro controls Hal's ring.  Lots of arguing between the two, double-crosses, and some pretty cool moments for each throughout.  The Guardians have a plan to replace the Green Lantern Corps, and will kill anyone who gets in their way.  What?  I am not sure where this is all headed in regards to resolution, but I just want Hal to be back in the driver's seat.

I have not yet read GLC, Red Lanterns, or The New Guardians, but from what I have heard, Red Lanterns is a little iffy.  We'll see!  It's tough to read some of the stuff out there in regards to comic reviews because they are always so inherently negative.  I swear sometimes some comic fans truly are not happy unless they are bitching about something.

Buck up, little campers!  Enjoy the ride!

Xbox 360

Not that you have asked, but I am on my 5th xbox.  FIFTH.  For anyone who has had an xbox, they know what the red ring of death means.  That is what happened to all my prior consoles.  Finally, I bought a new one.  I still have the old one, and it just collects dust upstairs on a shelf.

With my current xbox, I am now unable to load discs.  This is a little inconvenient when I want to, oh I don't know, PLAY MY XBOX.  Sure, I can play arcade games until I am blue in the face.  But, I would rather get blue in the face playing some of the discs I've spent over a thousand dollars on.

I will send it in, probably pay the 90-100 bucks to get it fixed, which is to say they will just send me a refurbished xbox that had already junked out before.  I can get a disc to play, but I just need to keep trying over and over again.  Yesterday, it worked on the 2nd try.  Today it worked after at least 20 times.  So I bought a game from the marketplace.  Battlefield Bad Company 2.  

It's supposed to be pretty fun.  My brother and nephew are fans, and that's good enough for me.

In the meantime, I'd like to tell my good friends at xbox: STOP SUCKING.  Seriously.  Soon I will be on xbox #6.  Xbox is easily the best and worst gaming system all at once.  Awesome games, excellent multiplayer and tons of extras through Xbox Live, and the most unreliable hardware known to man.  I'd rather have drunk monkeys make me a new xbox.

Batman & Robin 1-6

Dickhead.

Issue #1: 12

Issue #2: 4

Issue #3: 9

Issue #4: 9

Issue #5: 6

Issue #6: 2

12 + 4 + 9 + 9 + 6 + 2 = 42

42 times so far I have wanted to see Damien Wayne accidentally get run over by the Batmobile.  In the last entry, I discussed Jason Todd and his role as Red Hood.  Jason was voted off the bat-island because he was not popular with fans.

Damien is 50 times worse than Jason ever was as Robin.  I thoroughly dislike this character.  But...I can't wait for the next issue.  I can't wait because I really enjoy Peter Tomasi's writing.  Infinitely superior to Grant Morrison's drivel.  I also can't wait, because part of me WANTS to see Damien ran over by the Batmobile.

I would also like to see Damien become less of a jackwad.

This is a great series, truly.  Sure, disliking the character of Damien Wayne as Robin is one thing, but it's also pretty great to see how Batman and Alfred react to this little psycho.  Six issues in, and the storyline is still rolling.  Now I have to wait a month.  AARRGHH!

Red Hood and the Outlaws

After issue #1 of this series, especially if  you are a fan of these characters before the "new 52", you might want to stop reading this series altogether.  My problem is I let books stack up so I can enjoy them all at once, or in the case with novels, to make them last longer.  Reading, to me, is like episodic television.  It is not uncommon for me to be reading 3 or 4 books at once.  I am currently reading Extinction Agenda by Marcus Pelegrimas, Sandstorm by James Rollins, and Star Wars: Survivor's Quest by Timothy Zahn.  It's like turning the channel.  AND IT'S HOW I ROLL.

So it goes with comics.  I let Red Hood and the Outlaws stack up, and I am glad I did.

Jason Todd's Most Precious Memory

Jason Todd is the Red Hood.  Todd, you might recall, was the 2nd Robin to be under Batman's tutelage.  Back in the day, there was a storyline where readers could call into a 900# (not that kind of 900#...so disappointing) and determine whether or not Jason Todd would live or die.  The readers decided Jason needed to go.

The character was becoming a loose cannon, and as a result, Robin got to die at the hands of the Joker, via explosives.  The story was quite sad, and really shaped the Batman character for years and years to come.  Anyway, he's back.

Roy Harper, the former sidekick to Green Arrow, is also in the book.  Roy Harper, formerly known as Speedy had a name switch to Arsenal when DC finally realized the name Speedy was inherently stupid.  The character gained some fame in the 70's as the sidekick who turned to heroin in the infamous Green Lantern/Green Arrow series.  Social relevance and all that.  Dated stories, but man were they great. To this day I will still break them out.

The last Outlaw is Starfire.  She was a Teen Titan regular, former girlfriend to original Robin, Dick Grayson, and current slut with a selective memory.  This was the character that made me want to throw the first issue into the fireplace to use as kindling.  It became clear to me that I do not have a fireplace, so I had to scrap the idea.  

After finishing the 1st five issues, I suggest you go out and buy it.  Some minor dialogue annoyances and predictable formulas aside, I am interested in the story, and I am interested mostly in what happens to Jason Todd.  A very fun book. 

4 out of 5 Red Hoods.

Grifter

So I am pretty behind on comics.  Real life keeps me busy!  Real life is also a definition for family, work, and Call of Duty: Black Ops or MW3, you choose.

I want to care.

Grifter was the first thing I caught up on, because I recall not disliking the first few issues, but I wasn't really getting too into it, either.  So I stacked up my comics from "marginal" to "good" to "I can't wait".

Unfortunately for Cole Cash (Grifter), he was up first.  Five issues in, and I like the art, I think Grifter could be cool, but I just can't bring myself to give two shits about the Daemonites.  I hope I spelled that correctly.  I would check, but that would require me reaching to my right about a half-arm's length to open one of the issues.  There are things I cannot be bothered with, mind-control, sushi, speaking Mandarin Chinese, and trying to look up the correct (comic) spelling of Daemonite.  You might argue that with the insane rambling I've done in this paragraph, I could have looked it up.  You're absolutely right.  But what concerns me even more, is the origin of the phrase "I couldn't give two shits..."

Don't even get me started.

Grifter has one issue left to rope me in.  If not, I will replace it with a few songs to download off of iTunes.

The rest of the reading order...

We are going to the Bat-verse and will be reading these titles...

Red Hood and the Outlaws

Batgirl

Nightwing

Batman

Then we hit the GL universe...

New Guardians

Red Lanterns

GLC

GL

After that, we will hit the "others".

Flash

Aquaman

Justice League

There is still Catwoman, Stormwatch, some Marvel stuff, and the latest Maxim, but they will have to wait. 

The Other Guys

Okay, this is not a comic-related post, but I pay the rent, so eat it!  Today I watched the movie The Other Guys for approximately the 80th time.  The Other Guys stars Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg as two cops that are constantly in the shadows of guys like The Rock and Samuel Jackson.  

IMDB has this rated at a 6.6, yet I cannot stop watching it if it is on TV.  It was on one of the movie channels today, and I stopped and watched it.  No, really.  I did.  Michael Keaton is also in it as the captain.  He is so hilarious and criminally underused in movies.  There's a comic connection, I guess...Keaton played Batman.

What makes this movie for me is Wahlberg.  Everything he does, every line he has, just cracks me up.  He's the dumb guy (in the movie) who will kick your ass just for fun.  I am not going to go on and on about this movie, but it's awesome.  

Wahlberg and Ferrell

Star Wars News - Lucas to Retire

I see you sitting over there, thinking "George Lucas said he is retiring!  NO WAY!"

All right, you probably aren't sitting over there, and that is most certainly what you are not thinking.  I am sitting right here blogging on the subject, and my mind continues to wander off about the coffee I have yet to drink this morning. 

Boba Fett's Senior Picture

According to this link right here (click it!), George Lucas blames critics for his retirement.  You would think that after creating the Ewoks, he'd have developed a fairly thick skin.  Apparently not.  Lucas is responsible for bringing us cool characters like Boba Fett, the Darths Vader and Maul, Han Solo, and Slave Leia.

What about cool moments?  The space battle in A New Hope, Han SHOOTING FIRST, the destruction of the Death Star, almost all of Empire, the Tatooine rescue in Return of the Jedi, when they showed Ewoks dying, and the turn of Darth Vader as he rescues Luke.  Oh yeah, ANY TIME the Millinium Falcon is onscreen.

All of those moments above were awesome moments for a generation of nerds like me.  They were fun to watch way back in the day, and they are still fun to watch.  In the original trilogy, there were minor annoyances, like Luke whining about power converters, Luke whining a lot, Ewoks, Luke whining some more, dancing with Ewoks, and incestual kissing.  I still feel the amount of "awesome" outweighed the cheese.  At least Harrison Ford wasn't in a nuclear blast and thrown in a fridge about a million feet, only to walk out unscathed.  Different movie, I know.

In the prequels, something happened.  The visuals were amazing, the acting was horrible, and the cool moments were not at all outweighed by the awesome-factor.  Don't get me wrong, there were definitely some great moments, but as much as I wanted to like the prequels (and each film did get better, in my opinion), the amount of Jar Jar in Episode 1 really was difficult to come to terms with.  A team of counselors and all sorts of medication didn't help.  It wasn't until I saw a Salma Hayek nude scene did the world start feeling right again.

Back to Lucas retiring, I honestly feel like he had to have had a bunch of "yes men" surrounding him throughout the prequel era.  People who thought that a villain who was a Revolutionary War vet (I'm looking at you, Count Dooku) was a good idea.  People who told Lucas that wooden acting and forced dialogue really seemed to work.  People who told him that everything about Jar Jar was okee-day.

Sometimes people wish the Star Wars series was "darker' in tone.  In Episode 3, Anakin killing a slew of Jedi children is pretty freakin' dark.  The problem for me, is Anakin got more whiney as the prequels progressed.  Turn him to the dark side using his anger and hate, but don't turn him into a Sith badass through a mountain of crybaby dialogue.

Anyway, to George Lucas, I thank you for all the great Star Wars moments.  I also thank you for some of the excellence in regards to the expanded universe (comics, novels, video games).  You have to sign-off on those things, and some of it is truly incredible.  Timothy Zahn, anyone? 

As for me, I am going to watch the prequels again, but with the Rifftrax.

Comic Book Movies

Welcome back to the laziest blog poster ever.  I mean, no blog posts since October?  Let's just throw this out there...my resolution is to update this blog at least once in 2012.  Now I can't fail.

So I have been on a comic book movie spree lately.  This is a comic blog, so it would make sense that a nerd like me would watch comic book movies.  Having said that, one thing that irritates me is the elitist culture by some comic fans.  It's a lot of absolutes...

"GREEN LANTERN SUCKED"

"Nolan's Batman franchise is the measuring stick in which all comic films should be measured."

"Clooney's Batman was horrible!!!" 

Okay, I agree with that last one.

I am going to go out on a limb and say that the Nolan films are great, but other comic films out there are great, too, and nowhere near as dark or gravelly-voiced.  Take Captain America, for example.  How about Thor, Iron Man, or the Brandon Routh Superman until the plane saving scene was over with?  Oh yeah!  X-Men: First Class.  Awesome.  Even Wolverine's solo film is underrated, in my opinion.

See, I recently had a conversation with one of Nolan's cult members.  I do not lay blame or ill will towards Christopher Nolan, it isn't his fault that countless of basement-dwellers have chosen to latch onto him as a result of having nothing else to cling to.  I made the mistake of saying "Inception was just okay, for me."

A Nolan cultist loses their shit when something like this is said.  

"Dude, it was, like, a dream...(insert a hushed tone) within a dream."

I said, "Yeah, I get that, I just thought it was all a little squirrelly."  I was then given a look that implied that I did not have the mental capacity to "get" a mediocre film.

Star Trek and Star Wars fans have sometimes shared a rivalry I just fail to comprehend.  One thinks their chosen franchise is intensely superior to the other.  The fact here is, Star Trek IS superior, but that doesn't mean one can't enjoy Star Wars.  People should really lighten up and just enjoy things a little bit more, and perhaps redirect some of the insane fanboy rage into doing something positive, like volunteer in your community, or help mom vacuum the basement.  Every time I hear someone raging about anything at the comic shop, I want to spear tackle them into the Doctor Who display.

Enjoy life, and if there is something you do not enjoy, don't partake.  

Happy New Year!