from Captain America #137 (May 1971) by Stan Lee, Gene Colan & Bill Everett

posted by Mikester  @ 00:02 |

Some other folks' contributions to Tom's case-book:

Dave at Dave Ex Machina

Brandon at Random Panels

Jon at Face Down in The Gutters

Sleestak from Lady, That's My Skull

Vincent at Spandex Justice

Bully at Comics Oughta Be Fun

Gordon at Blog This, Pal

Erich at Fish-Flavored Baseball Bat

Bitterandrew

Jon at Hypnoray

Ragnell at Written World

Pal Dorian at (postmodernbarney)

---

And, my contribution to Brandon's Bat-Blank Challenge:

posted by Mikester  @ 00:01 |

1. I've been a little behind on keeping up with the comicsweblogosphere lately, which is how I missed the Random Panels "Bat Blank" challenge, in which contributors were encouraged to supply their own dialogue...well, just go look. Anyway, I inadvertently copy-catted this by throwing out my own user-friendly blank image in my last post. Random Panel's Brandon was a good enough sport, however, to post his version of Tom's case-book.

2. Neal Adams is making a return visit to the Coast to Coast AM radio show Saturday night to talk about his, shall we say, unconventional scientific theories. As I noted regarding his last appearance, I don't buy any of these theories in the slightest, but Adams does make for good radio.

3. I haven't yet watched this video 'blog of a fellow ripping into Wizard Magazine...I'd rather read a weblog entry at my own pace than watch an entry at someone else's...but it's apparently the hot topic of discussion at the moment.

For more Wizard critique, several months ago pal Dorian posted one of his own that I recommend.

posted by Mikester  @ 10:18 |

Okay, what would you have Tom write in his case-book? Here, have a blank:

posted by Mikester  @ 00:01 |

From the back cover of the X-Factor: The Longest Night hardcover:


So what kind of biscuit is Quicksilver?

posted by Mikester  @ 13:11 |

Hey, that sounds familiar.

It doesn't surprise me that other folks are predicting this resolution to the current Spider-Man storylines. (Not saying I was the first, just to be clear.) Of course, if this idea gets to be widespread enough, we may have another Armageddon 2001 deal on our hands, with Marvel cooking up some other completely convoluted solution.

Eh, whatever. However they do it, it'll all be put back together before Spider-Man 3 is in theatres, most likely.

---

My Canadian evil twin, Steven (formerly of Flat Earth fame) was good enough to point me to an online Swamp Thing mention that made it past my radar. The Skeptical Inquirer investigates swamp creatures, and Swampy gets a name-check (and a graphic novel cover scan).

It's an odd convergence of this site and my other one. THE BARRIERS HAVE BEEN BREACHED.

---

There were some new comics out this week, too, I guess: a new Little Lulu volume, number 11 in the series, came out, and if you aren't buying them by now, there ain't anything I can tell you now to get you started.

The new issue of Cinefantastique arrived, and it's the San Diego Comic Convention 2006 preview issue. Oh, that's unfortunate. (I'm assuming the mag made it to places with real magazine distribution prior to the con....)

I kept nitpicking the new Green Lantern action figures that came out this week (like "Saalak is the wrong shade of pink!"), and then, after realizing what I was doing, I had to just set them down and walk away.

The new edition of The Little Man, Chester Brown's collection of short pieces, also was unleashed this week...I kept picking up a copy, flipping through it, trying to decide if I needed to own it. Well, it does have a new cover, and some expanded footnotes...it's a good looking book, but I think I need to wait for a week when I didn't have to pay for a bunch of highly necessary automotive work. Feh, stupid real world. But for those of you out there who have a little more coin of the realm than I do and don't own this material, I recommend you give it a go. Bizarre humor, interesting autobiographical tales, and an emotionally-involving story or two. Good reading (here's a sample).

---

Speaking of Drawn and Quarterly, looking about a month back on the D&Q blog, there's an announcement of some progress on a new issue of Joe Matt's Peep Show. It's really been five years since the last issue?

---

If you see a lot of Blackhawk comics on pal Dorian's site...well, you can blame me. I'm the fella what forced them upon him. "Excuse me, good sir...would you like to buy some of...these?" (Unfortunately, I didn't have any of the Blackhawks with the really offensive Chop Chop for him...I just had the ones with the slightly less offensive Chop Chop.)

And, by the way, deciding to poke in on Dor's site while you're at work can provide a surprise.

posted by Mikester  @ 00:01 |

Pal Dorian reads more weblogs than should be healthy, generates nice installment of Blog@Newsarama's Meanwhile column. "Meanwhile...now with more gay!" Fantastic.

---

" A Cap/Superman super strength question (intelligent folk only!"

"Hi, I've got a super strength question that's kind've bugging me. This isn't the usual fan-boy, junk about who is stronger/who'd win Cap or Supes ?

"No, my question is this. Despite the fact that Clark Kent an unlimited energy source (the sun), he cannot seem to be able to bash any supernatural/magical creature around! Yet, they can smack him back and Clark will feel it just like you or I would! Dracula , or any vampire, seems able to beat up on Clark , and even mesmerize him. Yet, these vamps are nowhere near his strength/power level.

"Now on the other hand, Capt. Marvel & the Marvel Family can beat the tar out of any such creature! Does this mean Cap's powers are greater than Supes-- or just different? Are the blessings of ancient, pagan gods more powerful than an unlimited energy source? Does anyone know?"

I was just going to leave it at that, since I didn't think there was going to be any discussion in that particular thread that would be better than the set-up.

But I was wrong. Oh, so wrong.

Ladies and gents, some comic book free verse:

"Wonder no longer.

As mentioned above---

in SUPERMAN-102---
Supes and da Cheese (altho in personality, dialogue, etc--more BB, SUPERKID (('BIG' in spandex)) than CM----

HAMMERED each other--

all out--
no holds barred---
no quarter given---

to a DRAW--
indicating that they ARE EQUALS!

However---
Complicating things---
CM HAS KAYOED SUPES a couple of times---
with surprise, unexpected-by-Supes, sucker-punches, TRUE---

but still---
knock outs---
(and a knock-out by any other name--
is STILL a knock out)---
putting Supes in dreamland for 10 minutes or more.

In addition---
somewhere--
(SUPERMAN-BATMAN-4 Perhaps?)---
Supes himself ADMITTED that in an all-out slugfest--
Cap, due to his magical power sources---
WOULD HAVE the ADVANTAGE.

As for ME--
as one of the VERY FEW readers posting on these boards---

who has enjoyed---
supported---
followed--
analyzed---
BOTH characters since their BEGINNINGS in the GA---

I like to view them as COMPLEMENTARY EQUALS----
EACH being better--
more powerful than the other---
in SPECIFIC instances--
depending on circumstances, outside influences-conditions,
plot commplications, etc.

C-O-M-P-L-E-M-E-N-T-A-R-Y EQUALS---
yeah---THAT'S the ticket---
Which SHOULD BE SATISFACTORY to ALL intelligent, logical, unbiased fans of BOTH."

It's...it's beautiful....

posted by Mikester  @ 00:01 |

So I was doing some poking around on the inter-web, and spotted an article or two about the Superman Laptop Advance, a starter computer-type thingie for the young'uns:


Okay, perhaps that may be old news, but this was the first I heard about it...and besides, I wouldn't mind having a laptop that looked like that. Er, with a real screen, that is, and not that little blocky thing.

I then came across the Alienware site for their Superman Return-themed computers, both laptops and desktops. Have your computer speakers turned down, though, because this site is Flash 'n' sound-riffic. The flying Superman hovering over the screen is kinda neat, though, and I believe that is the entire John Williams Superman theme being played.

For those of you more interested in doing up your own Superman case mod for your computotron, here's a step-by-step article on how to get your own self one o'these:


Also: another Superman case mod, a Batman case mod (pretty cool!), and a Spider-Man case mod. I can't find a Swamp Thing case mod (aside from one by someone going by the name "Swamp Thing")...will it be up to me? (Maybe a tuber for the mouse....)

And here are a bunch of old Mac computers converted into aquariums...nothing to do with comics, but they sure are neat looking.

posted by Mikester  @ 00:01 |

Flash #286 (June 1980) - art by Don Heck & Dick Giordano

Aaaaaaaand...I'm back.

I actually hadn't planned on taking the last week off, believe it or not. I had no real reason to, as it wasn't like I had a bunch of real life stuff getting in the way or anything. I just thought...well, maybe, just for my own sanity, after two and a half years of daily posting, I needed to take a break.

I had originally planned on entering "LOW CONTENT MODE" last summer during our move to the new house...but as it turned out, I couldn't shake the blogging bug, even when I was just under the wire in maintaining my daily posts.

Ever since then, I'd been wanting to see what it would look like, turning the site black and white, having an old TV test pattern as a user icon, and posting several b&w scans...I thought it would look pretty neat, and, if I may say so, I think it did. I've set everything back to color now (except the comic scans themselves), so you may need to lift your monitor over your head and shake it vigorously to knock all the black and white out. Or you could just refresh your browser once or twice, if you're boring.

Let me tell you, though...two days in, I was jonesing hard to make a real post. Honestly, it was driving me crazy. That's...that's kind of sad.

During my so-called "time off," I did write up a new "Behind the Counter" column for Comic Book Galaxy, so feel free to check that out.

So, anyway, I'm back, I'm not quitting the weblog, I'm not burnt out, I don't hate comics...well, okay, maybe I do hate comics, but I'm not going away anytime soon. You're not going to get rid of me that easily.

---

Why, it seems like it was only yesterday that we where putting him through the hazing ritual (the one with the plastic orange Hot Wheels tracks and the margarine), and now he's off. Yes, Employee Nathan (AKA "Pope Nathan"), has departed our fine place of employment for the sunny upstate realms of San Francisco (where he is dangerously close to the hideous menace of pal Ian, another Ventura County expatriate).

We of course bid him a fond fondue and wish him well, as we'll miss him around here, mostly.

Ex-Employee Nathan fans 'n' stalkers can continue to follow his exploits at his new weblog, and the latest addition to the Associated Comics And Pop Culture Webloggers of Ventura County, CA And Outlying Environs* -- Tales from Treasure Island.

New employee Josh has stepped into the Nathan-shaped void left behind in our store...now, where'd I put those Hot Wheels tracks...?

---

Other stuff I missed:

Heath Ledger has been cast as the Joker for the Batman Begins sequel, and lo, there was much wailing and gnashing of teeth for, um, no real good reason. Pal Dorian expertly covers the reaction.

Rich Johnston reports that TwoMorrows' Swampmen book is cancelled...a rumor supported by the lack of product at that TwoMorrows link. Well, crap. Who do I have to bribe to get that book published? AAAAARGH!

Chris Karath has videos and photos aplenty from the Wizard World Chicago convention. See Captain America and Iron Man duke it out in the boxing ring!

Bully looks at the changing faces of the Black Cat comic (the Golden Age one, not the Spider-Man character), and shows us comic covers with some "back" -- including a Swamp Thing cover dedicated to yours truly. Such is my reputation on the 'net.

Zippy really didn't just say that in a syndicated comic strip, did he?

This was from before my break, but Jim Woodring posted The Greatest Nancy Panel Ever Drawn, and darned if I can't disagree.

---

I'd been joking with pal Dorian about how it looks like the folks at DC Comics are doing comics just for him, what with all the Wildcat love that's been showing up there lately.

But, finally, finally, every Mikester has his day, as Gail Simone throws me a Swamp Thing bone** in last week's release of All-New Atom #2. Not only is Swampy's alter ego Dr. Alec Holland included in the "quotenotes" (one of the book's conceits is having footnotes with quotes from scientists, real and imaginary, that reflect upon the story's events), but there's a climatic full-page illustration that looks an awful lot like this page from Swamp Thing #8 (Jan/Feb 1974) - click for the larger, spoiler-ish image (spoiler-ish for the Atom book, not the 30-year-old Swampy book):


Maybe I'm jumping the gun a tad, but it sure looks like Simone is bringing back one of Swamp Thing's old adversaries...and bringing Swamp Thing just that much closer to being back in the DC Universe proper.

Well, a boy can dream, can't he?

---

YOU'RE ON NOTICE:

* ACAPCWOVCCAOE for short, natch.

** "'Throws me a Swamp Thing bone' is today's PHRASE THAT PAYS!"

posted by Mikester  @ 00:01 |

Grendel: Red, White & Black #1 (September 2002) - art by Matt Wagner

Reminder: regular service will resume on this website tomorrow.

Yeah, I know, "big whoop."

posted by Mikester  @ 00:01 |