Category: Comics


I’ve enjoyed the work of Dwayne McDuffie for years. He did terrific things on television as well as comics. To hear of his passing today was quite a shock to me. Here’s the story from Reuters:

>>(Reuters) – Comic and television writer Dwayne McDuffie, perhaps best known as the co-creator of Emmy Award winning animated TV series “Static Shock,” has died, his publisher DC Comics said on Tuesday. He was 49 years-old.

McDuffie died on Monday due to complications in surgery, according to a report on the website Comic Book Resources, but the cause of death could not immediately be confirmed.

“Dwayne McDuffie left a lasting legacy on the world of comics that many writers can only aspire to,” Dan DiDio, co-publisher of DC Comics media division DC Entertainment, said in a statement on Tuesday.

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You’d think a Broadway musical based on the Marvel character Spider-Man would crawl to the top of the heap. But technical problems, including injuries to cast members trying to perform the complicated and dangerous stunts, keep this show from moving forward. Here’s the latest:

>>Spider-Man On Broadway Creator “Happy” About Delayed Opening

Julie Taymor is not concerned about postponing the opening of Spider Man: Turn Off The Dark from January 11 to February 7, 2011.

“We’re happy about it,” Taymor told me last night in an interview. And why not? Even in previews, as a work in progress, Spider Man is a hit. It’s playing at 98% capacity, taking in almost $1 million a week.

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I recently caught up with Rest, a sci-fi comic about people who take a drug that allows them to live without sleep. Originally, only a couple of issues had been released. However, last week, the rest of the story was published with the previous issues in a trade paperback, which is something very special.

Here’s a story from Comic Book Resources about the book being translated to TV:

>>With Heroes behind him, Milo Ventimiglia is finally getting some Rest.

Deadline reports that the actor, lifelong comic book fan and recently minted comic book creator is set to star in a television adaptation of Rest, the comic book series he co-created with his Divide Pictures producing partner Russ Cundiff. Ventimiglia’s latest project sees him returning to familiar territory on two fronts: not only is Rest a comics-based series similar to the superhero-themed Heroes, but the TV show will air on NBC, the network that once housed the recently canceled series. Ventimiglia and Cundiff are both serving as executive producers on the project alongside Marc Silvestri and Matt Hawkins from Top Cow, the comic book company responsible for publishing Rest. Smallville writer Philip Levens has been tapped to adapt the comic book for the small screen.

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I usually don’t like zombies but, as I posted previously, I love The Walking Dead comic book. Well, the show debuted on the cable channel AMC Sunday night, and it performed very well.

First, here’s my review as it appeared on the SciFiPulse website.

>>The Walking Dead, “Days Gone Bye,” written and directed by Frank Darabont.

It’s important for you, the reader, to know that I’m a BIG fan of the comic this show is based on. So I really cannot speak as someone who is looking at this cold. I have a frame of reference for this series, and my expectations were very high going into it. I must say that showing this on Halloween was a brilliant move by AMC.

First, a little background. I got into the comic when I was visiting a local comics shop in my hometown and asked my usual question: What’s good that I’m not reading? The store owner pointed me to The Walking Dead, written by some guy named Robert Kirkman.

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So, officially the recession is over, I hear. Then why are we still having so many money troubles?

This past weekend was the New York Comic-Con. Although I didn’t get to attend (for monetary reasons), some interesting financial news came out at the start of the con. DC Comics said they were going to cut back the cover prices on the ongoing titles starting in January. In less than an hour, Marvel Comics basically did the same.

Why is this happening? Because fans are dropping comics that cost $3.99, mostly. We now have limited resources, so we have to cut back on the number of titles we buy. I know I have!

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DC Comics’ All-Star Superman!

Even though it is a year or so until this animated film can be purchased, there has been a lot of buzz about translating this Grant Morrison/Frank Quitely comics mini-series. Honestly, it’s one of my all-time favorite Superman stories. I wish Superman was more like this all the time!

A new preview has been released, and you can check it out below:

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Last weekend, I had the privilege of attending the Baltimore Comic-Con, held in the Baltimore Convention Center. Sadly, it is near the field where the Baltimore Ravens were playing a pre-season football game, which caused the parking prices to triple. Still, it was a fun outing. Look for more of my reflections on SciFiPulse.Net today!

This article appeared in the Baltimore Sun before the Comic-Con started on Saturday, but it still has some good things to say about it:

>>A comic con for comic fans

At a time when the big comic conventions are trying to be all things to all people, Baltimore’s tries to keep its focus narrow

By Chris Kaltenbach, Baltimore Sun

When it comes to his Baltimore Comic-Con, organizer Marc Nathan takes that word “comic” seriously. The annual fan gathering is a comic-book convention, he stresses, not a pop-culture convention or a cool stuff convention or a famous people convention.

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Over at SciFiPulse.Net, I wrote a Comix Portal column about a child psychologist’s dislike for Iron Man and some other recent super-heroes. One of the things that I disagreed with the lady about was the apparent feeling that children (particularly boys) are way too stupid to figure out that bad behavior shouldn’t be emulated on their own–they need comics to preach to them about what to do and what not to do.

Right on the heels of that story comes another one about groups failing to understand just how smart and imaginative kids can be. Here’s an article about protesting toys of the Fantastic Four now being given out at McDonalds restaurants by Dan at themovieblog.com:

>>Alright, so I stumbled upon a press release for CCFC (Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood) while reading a few articles on Cinematical’s website this morning.

The CCFC is targeting Happy Meals at McDonalds with good reason, their goal is to prevent McDonalds from using toys to entice kids into eating at their restaurants. Now so far I’m on board somewhat, I do think it’s a good idea to stop McDonalds from using toys as bait for children but then again if a kid does eat the crap at McDonalds don’t you think they deserve at the very least a cheap toy as a reward for keeping it down?

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I knew there was a good reason to buy (and not throw out) comics!

Here’s a story from ABC news that explains how The Man Of Steel saved one family from foreclosure:

>>A struggling family facing foreclosure has stumbled upon what is considered to be the Holy Grail of comic books in their basement–a fortuitous find that could fetch upwards of a quarter million dollars at auction.

A copy of Action Comics No. 1, the first in which Superman ever appeared, was discovered as they went about the painful task of packing up a home that had been in the family since at least the 1950s. The couple, who live in the South with their children, asked to remain anonymous.

“The bank was about ready to foreclose,” said Vincent Zurzolo, co-owner of ComicConnect.com and Metropolis Comics and Collectibles in New York. “Literally, this family was in tears. The family home was going to be lost and they’re devastated. They can’t figure out a way out of this. They start packing things up. They go into the basement and start sifting through boxes–trying to find packing boxes–and they stumble on eight or nine comic books.”

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It takes a while to sort out what happens each year at the San Diego Comic-Con. This year is no exception. At SciFiPulse.Net, Ian and I are still sifting through news items and videos from the big event.

Here’s how one reporter, rudie from anyclip.com, looked back at his con experience:

>>It’s Tuesday, I just got back from San Diego and Comic-Con. This was my first trip to Comic-Con and moreover, my first trip to San Diego. What a wonderful city! This city is the perfect mix of surf and pop culture. Everything in the downtown area is dedicated to Comic-Con and it’s fans. From the 70 degree weather to the smell of sea water, to the beautiful people of southern California to, of course, the beach; my experience in San Diego for Comic Con was magical, exciting and, by far, one of the nerdiest things I have ever done in my life.

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