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Post by humanbelly on Mar 19, 2011 16:37:19 GMT -5
&, this is why Thor, Cap and Ben Grimm are interesting; because they are different. Thor and Cap have barely been touched on yet on EMH and well, I just like the ever-lovin' blue eyed Thing of Yancy Street a lot. Aunt Petunia agrees, we need the "idol o'millions" to scrap it out with the Hulk. How's that for a tangent? *sigh*-- but they'll never-- NEVER-- be able to find someone that'll be able to nail Ben's voice the way Paul Frees did in the old Hanna-Barbera FF cartoon. It's one of the few aspects of that cartoon that's stuck with me all these years. . . I mean, you'd have to find a Paul Frees impersonator. . . HB
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Post by humanbelly on Mar 18, 2011 11:46:34 GMT -5
Thanks HB! I was in the moment. I, like everyone else am eagerly awaiting new episodes of EMH, and chewing the fat (disgusting as that phrase is) helps pass the time. So, it is likely we'll eventually see the Falcon, Hercules, and The Vision. Do you guys have any predictions/hopes for voice actors or interpretations? I think John DiMaggio would be excellent as Hercules, given his run on The Brave and the Bold. I could easily see an episode called "Guys Night Out" where Hercules takes Thor out in NYC to try to get Thor to loosen up a little. Maybe they beat up the Absorbing Man in the process, but you'd get to see Hercules celebrating his godhood, whereas Thor tends to mourn his responsibilities. For the Vision, the obvious answer is Corey Burton, but that almost seems too easy. Still, I 'd like them to emphasize that Vision isn't a robot, but an artificial human. Actually, I can't readily think of a specific "incarnation" of the Vision that really stands out, though the bond he had with Simon Williams was interesting. Throw in the Grim Reaper as a grieving brother trying to destroy this mockery of his fallen brother and that would bea pretty good episode. As for the Falcon.. I think I would ask Donald Glover to do it. He digs comics, he's funny and talented.. it could work. What if he's a younger character, say 17, who is inspired by the Avengers and wants to help people? Cap and the Panther agree to train him, but Cap is reluctant because of Bucky. Sam grows as a person and as a hero, but then Bucky resurfaces as the Winter Soldier, and Cap tries to shut Sam out to protect him. So.. I obviously have a lot of free time on my hands. Any thoughts, yay or nay are great. If you got any ideas I'd love to discuss them. I've this notion that Jason Statham would be great as Electro, even though I'm pretty sure Maxwell Dillon is from Long Island. ....And that just set the bar. Oh man, Drew, obviously you're our go-to guy on voice-over questions! (Sort of like how bobc is our on-board artist-guy. . . as well as our computer gaming industry guy. . . ) I hadn't a clue about the VO guys you were referring to, so I used this-here internet thingy to track down Corey Burton, as your reference to his being obvious for the Vision stuck with me. Came across clips of him voicing Red Tornado & Braniac, and I thought, yep, this is certainly in his skill-set. Except, if anything, Vizh's voice would be even colder and less expressive than either of those characters. While not flat-out robotic, Vision's voice in his formative years (and far beyond) was referred to very frequently, citing the fact that it was always so disturbingly cold, flat, inexpressive, unemotional, hollow, etc, etc, etc. This was of course hard to convey in the non-aural medium of comics, but the writers (and editors) did a fine job over many years of conveying the fact that the inhuman quality of Vizh's voice may have been the biggest stumbling block towards his being quickly accepted by folks who weren't familiar with him. Now, how a VO actor manages to capture all of that, and yet not sound "robotic" may indeed be a tough assignment. To my mind's ear, he's always sounded like the HAL-9000 (from 2001), which would actually be incorrect, as HAL's voice was ironically just about the only warm (albeit terminally laid-back) aspect of that whole film. But there you go. And so we go skipping merrily off onto another tangient. . . probably leading to a moebius loop. . . ! HB
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Post by humanbelly on Mar 17, 2011 13:43:45 GMT -5
Dear God, what a wall of text! Sorry everybody! No, no, drew-- this is fine. It's good stuff. I, for one, thoroughly enjoy a longer, in-depth, heartfelt post like that. I've written many-a, many-a, many-a-screen-stretcher in my time here. Your efforts resemble the more substantive storytelling that we do all seem to miss so much. . . . . . you're not "de-compressed", as it were. . . HB
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Post by humanbelly on Mar 11, 2011 21:59:28 GMT -5
Hey, hey, HEY! Where's the "Is it a landmark?" question?? Okay, maybe the story itself isn't-- but I'm pretty sure this is a legitimately iconic cover. This cover pose was the one used to create the Thor figure for an early series of one-color, molded-plastic toy Marvel figures (about 5" tall). Sort of like really big plastic army soldiers.
But yes, a terrific cover-- one I recognize w/out knowing a fig's tooth about the story inside.
HB
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Post by humanbelly on Mar 11, 2011 7:59:32 GMT -5
Let me add another venue that competes for their attention-- Tabletop Gaming Cards (although I'm pretty sure there's another name for it)-- i.e., Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokemon, and the like. I know the specific ones tend to come & go w/ current fads-- but the number of high schoolers that this activity stays vital for is amazing (my son & a lot of his pals- male & female- included). And I think it may also tend to fill that fantasy/wish-fulfillment niche that superhero comics often did for us oldsters.
HB
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Post by humanbelly on Mar 9, 2011 19:56:38 GMT -5
Impossible Man just popped up (heh) as a supporting character in this month's Hulk (sort of the Red Hulk-centric title). It wasn't particularly impressive at all. In fact. . . I'm having trouble recalling the point of the story, or many of its details. It was a "lighter" issue. . .
And say, wasn't Impy instrumental in defeating Galactus during that above-mentioned longer run in FF? That was the "Cosmic Indigestion" gambit, yes?
His New Mutant days were actually kinda enjoyable, as he became buddies with that other Warlock character-- the one that was a techno-virus-entity-thingy. The were a pretty amusing couple of non-culturally-assimilated loose cannons, I remember. . .
HB
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Post by humanbelly on Mar 8, 2011 18:50:58 GMT -5
Played this at Best Buy a week or so ago for a few minutes. Fear a She-Hulk/Cap/Thor team. Boy, I sure wish our beloved Wii system was a compatible platform for this game. Seems like we miss out on some neat releases pretty often. NOT that we're about to go and get yet another game system, mind you! HB
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Post by humanbelly on Mar 7, 2011 21:15:00 GMT -5
Just thought I'd blow off some steam here..... I've been trying to contact SOMEBODY at Wizard---via e-mail and phone calls, about how I will be reimbursed for the cancellation of Wizard and Toyfare, both of which I have subscriptions that still have 5-6 months remaining. So far no responses---I even reached one PETER KATZ (VP of Business Affairs and Development) on the phone, and was hung up on when I mentioned I wanted to be directed to someone who could help/answer my request. And I was very polite. WTF? Anyone have any experience dealing with cancelled subscriptions? My biggest peeve is getting ripped off for my hard earned $$$. Thanks for any info. Welllllllll I talked to someone with a law degree, and while this corporate stuff isn't even remotely their field, they did have some insight. If the publishers are declaring bankruptcy, then an attorney would be designated to see after the interests of the company's creditors. . . and subscribers would presumably be among them. BUT, it's also very, very likely that the subscribers would be pretty darned low on the list. Actual businesses (printers, suppliers, landlords, etc) would probably be taken care of first--- and if there's no many to keep the magazine(s) afloat as it is, then the liklihood of a refund would be pretty remote indeed. My guess is that's why you were so abruptly hung-up upon (inexcusable, regardless)--- nothing left to lose, and no incentive to deal with you at all. I did google "Toyfare subscription refund" and got some interesting hits. It does look like the company line at this point is along the lines of "another suitable magazine will be substituted for the remainder of your subscription". But, man, there's a LOT of vitriol being thrown around out there about how badly Wizard has been ripping folks off for quite some time now in various ways. It's clearly quite personal for many folks. Forecast doesn't look great, though, S-Foxx--- many sympathies. HB
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The 14
Mar 5, 2011 15:19:14 GMT -5
Post by humanbelly on Mar 5, 2011 15:19:14 GMT -5
Yes, more or less those were the general lines of my thinking, but I must say you gave the situation even more thought than I did. And Tigra flirted with Hank, Tony AND Simon during her stint with the West Coasters... . I would like to see how they would deal with leadership issues in a team with 3 or 4 capable leaders, but without Cap being around. Historically, Tony has a problem with playing nice when he isn't in charge himself, even when he's the one who put them in charge in the first place...! Okay, okay-- Saturday afternoon, waiting for my daughter at dance class again (competition season-- a lot of extra practices right now), and perhaps one's mind wanders down the familiar old "hey, wouldn't it be cool if-?" road that was a favored pastime from when we were twelve, y'know? (Which I believe has been alluded to around here recently--) But Bong's scenario just keeps creeping back into my thoughts, I'm afraid. In the spirit of there never being too much of a good thing, could we add to his melodrama-laden dream-team? I'm thinking that bringing back the (original) Vision, and then adding Wanda, Black Knight, and Jocasta to this mix would be a veritable Death-by-Chocolate of entangled personal plot potential, here. That's, what, 12 characters who, with the exception of songbird, have complicated relationships with multiple other members of the team. Plus it adds one more legitimate leader (Wanda, from Force Works), a former field leader (Swordsman) Ha! Meant BLACK KNIGHT here, not Swordsman! 9-30-11, and a somewhat illegitimate former leader/LONGtime stalwart (Vision). Ohhhhh the group therapy sessions that could be led by Jarvis. . . (Granted, Doc Samson would probably start them up, but his sanctimonious behind would get tossed out on its. . . ear. . . in short order) Granted that not many folks may have read Force Works but me. . . but I do recall that Tony was particularly horrible in that series about not playing nice with the very team leader that he had more-or-less appointed (Wanda). This would be a very tough group, no doubt. HB-- just wastin' everyone's time. . . ;D
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Post by humanbelly on Mar 5, 2011 6:39:32 GMT -5
I was trying to clumsily do a bit of looking-into this online a couple of days ago. . . searching Nielsen ratings results and the like. . . and came across a forum on a site called toonzone. It's an animated cartoon focused site (natch), but they did seem quite well-informed about the minutia of programming and the like.
A couple of notable things I picked up:
1) The Disney XD Channel's ratings are painfully lower in general than the regular Disney Channel's--- just across the board.
2) EMH's ratings on that channel have been abysmal, as well. There's some consensus that the channel is largely devoted to goofy comedy fare, and that the Avengers are hopelessly out of place in that crowd.
3) They've been running right after XD's most popular program, which has made the Nielsen drop-off look even more profoundly bad.
4) Disney hasn't made the effort to make the show high-profile enough (or targeted it correctly) to draw in new viewers--- i.e., folks/kids NOT already familiar with the Avengers. Personally, I imagine they were just counting on Iron Man's current popularity and visibility to do the heavy lifting there. Sort of a "produce-it-and-they-will-come" mentality.
5) EMH does not seem to be on any upcoming program schedule that's available right now. Of course, those only seem to work a week or so ahead.
Boy, this surely doesn't seem hopeful, does it? Of course, it would kind of make sense to hold off airing Avengers-related programming until the big movie comes out, and thereby ride the related wave of publicity for free--- but that seems kinda cynical. . .
Oh hey, you know who was on that Toonzone forum? One of our own long-unheard-from members: Medinnus! Sort of dropped out shortly after I came on (Hmmmm. . . ). Was the creator of all of those delightful little animated bobble-headish mini-hero icons that we were seeing around here for quite awhile. My daughter LOVED those-!
HB
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The 14
Mar 4, 2011 20:17:32 GMT -5
Post by humanbelly on Mar 4, 2011 20:17:32 GMT -5
Recall the panel in #58 (I think we've mentioned it here somewhere before--), showing all of the past members and "those who were merely called"-? When I first saw that back in the late 60's, I had no idea who Herc, Wanda, & Pietro were. They were simply mysterious figures from distant Avengers' rosters past, and carried no emotional weight for me at all. In reality, they were barely a few months removed from activity-(!!)- but I imagine that's the power that imprinting (as it were) has on us, even when we're unaware of it. That reminds me of my first issue of Adventure, #357, with the Legion of Super-Heroes. The story featured seven Legionnaires--Saturn Girl, Brainiac 5, Superboy (of course), Cosmic Boy, Princess Projectra, Sun Boy, and the deceased Ferro Lad (his ghost). But there were a couple of panels picturing some of the other Legionnaires (unnamed). It was very intriguing and made me want to read more issues, to find out who these other characters were. And yes, I remember our discussion of that full-page panel in #58. As I mentioned back then, I loved seeing Pietro, Wanda and Natasha--'cause to me it meant that Roy hadn't forgotten that them, so I still held out hope they'd return--but WTF was SPIDER-MAN doing there??? (As I mentioned in that older post, back then I was unaware that in Spider-Man Annual #3, the Avengers wanted Spidey to join the team). But I remember thinking boy, Avengers sales must have been really low if Marvel had to resort to crass commercialism by including Spider-Man (I knew he was Marvel's most popular character) in #58's assemblage... ;D I'm always delighted (and blown away!) by how you're always able to pull up an appropriate visual aid reference for any discussion! (I think your "twin sons" head shots of Steve Rogers & Robert Redford awhile back may have been your award-winner so far. . . ) Thanks for including this page-- I haven't revisited it in quite a long while. Now I also remember that I wondered why Goliath didn't have his goggles on here, since that was largely the only difference in his uniform at that point. As I now view this with a slightly more critical eye--- does it look just a bit patched-together to you, maybe? Kind of odd perspectives & proportions? And even as a kid I thought Spidey's mask looked very. . . off, here. Ahh, but still a terrific "bonus pin-up", as it were. The smell of old newsprint somehow reaches me olfac'tries just thinkin' about it. . . HB P.S.-- Hey, almost 14 in this panel! 13, in fact. . .
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Post by humanbelly on Mar 4, 2011 7:46:45 GMT -5
Peter Marks from the Washington Post simply LAMBASTED Spidey:TOTD in the paper this morning. ). No thanks, HB--you can keep him! Please! But I did read his review online (link below) and I can't say I disagree with his assessment--I see he mentioned some of the things that gave me pause, such as the inclusion of elements from Greek myths. Well, and I kinda wonder if that's the Julie T factor. She's clearly (and successfully) a very artistically high-concept director-- but the danger (and again, I see this a LOT down at the levels I operate in) is that not everything can support or justify a "high-concept" treatment. In fact, I kind of think the majority of things don't, as it more often than not gets in the way of clear story-telling--- which should be the FIRST priority of any theatrical work. Greek Mythology? A Greek chorus? This ancient Arachne spider-spirit being? Honestly, I don't think this conceptual arrow could be more off-target. This is all huge and weighty and creaks under the strain of cosmic significance, etc, etc--- and it completely misses what the narrative appeal is in Pete/Spidey's saga: that this is a relatively small, focused story about one young man's personal growth. I'm sure that all of the superfluous high-concept folderol can only serve to fatally diffuse that focus, and pull our attention away from his point of view. You know why the Spiderman movies were successful? Sam R (director) had followed and loved Spidey since childhood. He "got" Spidey. Julie T was handed a stack of comic books that she'd never read before, and was approached about making a musical. Her interest in Spidey wasn't inherently there, and so her instincts led her back to her artistic comfort-zone, rather than really letting her trust the material. Hmm-- amazing that I could be so blatantly opinionated about a show I've never seen. . . HB
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Post by humanbelly on Mar 3, 2011 6:05:30 GMT -5
Daggone it--- this really isn't a good sign, is it? Disney doesn't let things sit if they think they can squeeze some revenue out of it. . .
HB
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The 14
Feb 27, 2011 13:15:59 GMT -5
Post by humanbelly on Feb 27, 2011 13:15:59 GMT -5
My dream team (as of now...) would be: Hawkeye, Songbird, Wasp, Giant-Man, Iron Man, Tigra, Quicksilver and Crystal. . Wow, Doc, "Dream Team" or "Interpersonal Armageddon Nightmare Team"?? The personal storyline potential here would be dynamite--- I would TOTALLY be on board with this team, just to see if they could function while deeply liking, hating, loving, desiring, being jealous of, resentful toward, faithful to, etc each other the entire time! Relevant items: Songbird was throwing herself at Hawkeye, at one point. Hank & Jan are divorced. Wasp has slept with Hank, Clint & (probably) Tony. Tigra has sort of slept with Hank. Crystal & Pietro are bitterly divorced, and she's unhappily married yet again ('tho I may be behind on that score). Hawkeye & Quicksilver joined the team together, but have never had a friendly relationship at all. Hawkeye, Jan, Tony, and Hank have all been team leaders in one form or another (Hawkeye & Jan being the best, IMO). Tony, we presume, is still a guy prone to thinking w/ his hormones, yes? On a team w/ at least two attractive women (Tigra & Crystal) who may seem receptive to that sort of attention? Or does he come-on to unconquered Melissa? (He makes me crazy-- the whole "playboy" shtick is extremely unpalatable to me, but it does give him a very recognizable character flaw). Ohhhhh, it's juicier than the pairings-off on a high school band trip! Or perhaps a very small touring theater troupe-! Who'll pair off w/ whom? I'm thinking. . . Hank & Jan back together (more or less), out of familiarity, a long shared history, and (oddly enough) trust. I see Crystal pursuing Clint, but him having none of it, and (depending on if Bobbi's alive or dead these days) either standing alone, or becoming closer to Melissa. Pietro will, of course, chase Crystal yet again, and be infuriated by her attentions toward Clint. Tigra and Tony could easily get together casually, but he would throw her over once Crystal turns to him w/ her Inhuman ways-- since she's spurned by Clint, and is actively avoiding Pietro's attentions. Out of mutual heartbreak, resentment, and rejection, Pietro & Tigra form an unlikely bond (hoo-boy--- nothing good coming from that. . . ). Wow, it'd be like the Vision/Wanda/Mantis/Swordsman quadrangle subplot on steroids! How does one fight Terrax the Tamer and choke back the bitter tears of a broken heart at the same time?? um. . . was this the sort of vision you had with this team, Doc? Am I stomping all over your dream? HB
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Post by humanbelly on Feb 25, 2011 19:27:56 GMT -5
In a way, the Hulk's ill-fated inaugural six-issue run is almost like a false start. Other than the very well done first half of Issue #1, with sequences that have been endlessly re-presented, homaged, refered to, and justifiably revisited, it really is a series of stories without a solid central focus or even a consistent direction. The commie red-baiting stuff was a truly unfortunate go-to escape hatch when stymied for solid story ideas. And really, the only lasting antagonists for the Hulk that we got out of this run were the perpetually histrionic homicidal war-monger, General T-bolt Ross, and the ultimate enduring C-lister-- Tyrannus (I'd forgotten he originally appeared in ish #5!). Oddly enough, an awful lot of this weak non-formula was retained with Hulk's re-introduction in Astonish a couple of years later--- but there was at least an effort to create his own specific rogues gallery (although Boomerang was, unfathomably, among the first in line there). But it was a good year or two after that before we were introduced to both the Leader and the Abomination, and managed to largely divest ourselves of the Fightin' the Dirty Commies motif.
Oh man-- issue #6 will be next, won't it? (SPOILER ALERT)
The method of defeat for the hopelessly lame Metal Master has GOT to be a finalist in the Stupid Contrivances/You've Gotta Be Kiddin' Me Hall of fame. It's literally throw-the-book-on-the-floor stupid.
And remember. . .I'm Greenskin's biggest fan!
HB
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Post by humanbelly on Feb 24, 2011 19:47:05 GMT -5
It's just. . . he's . . . how could anyone. . . The COSTUME! Omigod-- look at this poor fool's COSTUME!!! Owen, I'm really loving these StrTa & TtA flashbacks-- I kid you not. They're like a "Worst of the Worst Blooper Reel of the Earliest Beginnings of the Marvel Age". A delightful reminder that brilliant crative work doesn't spring full-blown into existence. It usually has to slip on a banana peel and full face down onto a table full of custard pies quite a few times first-! Oh, that costume. . . . . . combined with one of the worst "villain" names ever. ("Hypno Hustler" possibly giving Pete a run for his money. . . ) HB
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Post by humanbelly on Feb 24, 2011 19:42:55 GMT -5
[HB: Yes, that´s right! Crusher only wants his rest and wants to go to a little republik in south america. land where no superheroes hanging around. But after his little stuggle with clint Barton in the saloon a chain of events is hindering him to follow his vacation-shedule. Ha!-- that was the very amusing detail that I'd forgotten! Sure, Creel wants to get away from it all. . . BUT, it would still be in circumstances where he'd be able to bully someone around, at the very least. He's just such a classic bully personality-- where he's simply incapable of perceiving self-worth unless it's in circumstances where he's beaten someone else down lower than him. But here, he clearly assumes it shouldn't bother anyone if he usurps some little backwater where the populace is already under a totalitarian boot heel. Hmm-- not that he could actually articulate all of that. . . Boy, mich, your question about Falcon's 19th-century American slave idiom is a very neat reminder that many aspects of American culture aren't as widespread as we (here) tend to think they are. Things that, to us, are ingrained and easily-recognized parts of our culture (and even our society) can come across as completely unrecognizable artifacts to folks from other places. During grad school, I had a pair of housemates who were exchange students (music) directly from China. VERY sheltered, traditional young women. I was playing the Beatles "You Won't See Me" on my guitar one night, and they asked me what it was. I told them it was the Beatles. Aaaaaand they had no clue. Had NEVER heard of the Beatles. Never. This was in 1987. I was completely at a loss as to how to even begin explaining. . . HB
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Post by humanbelly on Feb 24, 2011 19:18:31 GMT -5
Waiting in the mall while Daughter of HB is at dance class-- which gives a fellow a chance to yammer on probably more than anyone cares for him to! (Fair warning, friends. . .)
So, I did indeed go over and check out the Avengers boards at Marvel's main site. Without going in too deeply, it appeared to me that their whole board system has only been operating since this past May (which doesn't seem possible). I also noticed that the format, tone, and everything showed a noticeable similarity to our own happy community here. Coincidence? Or fiendish conspiracy?? But here's the big thing: A VERY busy, much-used current thread is entitled something like "Does anyone else think Avengers & New Avengers is terrible right now?" (or some near paraphrase). And I'll tell ya, there is NO lack of agreement from about 95% of the posters there. They sound (dare I say it?) a lot like us. The very same criticisms and complaints, right down the list-- although possibly a shade less harsh than we can sometimes get. (The board monitors are serious about maintaining a respectful tone.) There are other threads that drift into the same subject. And there are at least a couple that discuss intelligently and at length why DC is much more readable and enjoyable than Marvel right now.
And I'm thinking, "This is Marvel's OWN SITE that I'm reading this on! SURELY someone has GOT to be in charge of passing this feedback on up the ladder, right??"
Don't worry, though-- I shan't be lured away to that other, corporately-approved board. This here's muh Avengers home--- I ain't a-never gonna leave it. . .
(Well, unless I'm driven out by torch-wielding peasants or something. But now I'm mixing my movie cliches. . . )
HB
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Post by humanbelly on Feb 23, 2011 12:51:30 GMT -5
Oh man, yes we do! I totally second that!
The precedent that you would so bravely set could prove inspirational to the rest of us aging Boomer and post-Boomer guys. . . and then maybe this thread would transorm into a viewing-ground for others amongst us who maintain these beloved household shrines to our favorite characters.
*ahem*
You are THE MAN, KidC! BE the leader! BE the trend-setter!!
HB
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Post by humanbelly on Feb 22, 2011 6:40:00 GMT -5
It's more or less on par with prices in Italy, if not a little cheaper. In comparison, in Japan DVDs with only 2 episodes of a series cost about the equivalent of 80$ ^^ . Cue the screen-engulfing spit-take. Eighty dollars?? Eighty DOLLARS??!!?? Good night Irene-- my trusty system calculater tells me that comes to roughly $1.81 per minute for a 2-episode disc! Oh, that's just loopy. Even granting that it's a completely different market, society, etc-- there is simply no way to defend that kind of price structure. Man-- do fans over there really pay that much, or is it like w/ jewelry over here, where "no one pays retail", as it were? HB
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Post by humanbelly on Feb 21, 2011 13:48:32 GMT -5
US-Avengers #183„The redoubtable Return of Crusher Creel“ Michelinie/Byrne/Janson After by the US-Government forced re-organisation of the Avengers the first task is the mad iron-bowl swinging Crusher Creel (Absorbing Man). The cause is an ordinary saloon punch-up at the NY pier between Crusher Creel and the ex-Avenger Clint Barton. Clint calls his ex-comrades by phone for help to the location. The Avengers are heading to the harbour and encounters there the Absorbing Man grown up to an amazing iron-giant. The first foe after the Korvac-Saga and the following re-organisation of the team is the Absorbing Man. He is a typical B-foe from the second league. Over and over after significant incidents and big changes an easier foe like him (for example Whirlwind is one of these foes, too) is battling against the Avengers. I think the writer intends to give the reader a little breather after such big incidents and stories. This is another cover that I've always liked, and I'm not even sure why, oddly enough. It might even be something as simple as the fact that the background is a lovely, bright blue sky, and all the colors look great against it. Not many pretty, waterfront blue skies on your typical comic-cover, historically. . . Pretty dynamic portrait of Creel, too. Am I right in remembering that this was just about the first time we had a portrayal of Crusher Creel where he had a bit more depth? Without yielding the fact that he's a creep, and a brute, and a thug, and dangerously, horribly violent-- we manage to see a bit of completely unexpected depth, yes? In that he mostly just wants to hang it all up, and get the heck out of town to live some simple, idyllic (and laughably implausible) life in seclusion on an island somewhere. Doesn't want to fight--- just wants to GO. Mind you he appears to be kidnapping that hapless woman in the process. . . and yet, the writing manages to elicit an almost sympathetic response to his situation. I thought this was pretty cool. HB
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Post by humanbelly on Feb 21, 2011 13:33:28 GMT -5
Judging from their respective running times, vol. 1 will be 7 episodes & vol 2 will be 6 (154 minutes and 135 minutes). Seems kind of . . . short to me, for the approx. $20 retail price. But maybe that's par for animated series like this? I haven't delved into this market before. As soon as Disney puts something out, though, I'm always skeptical. I've always had this sense of them making a great effort to give as little product for as much price as they can possibly get away with. Hmm, and perhaps they've purposely done this little hiatus thing in order to boost the pre-order demand for the DVD's? I am CERTAIN Disney's capable of that kind of bald-faced manipulation. HB
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Post by humanbelly on Feb 15, 2011 15:52:38 GMT -5
I'm not quite sure the voting analogy is 100% solid, though, SW. (But yep, I do indeed vote. Absolutely my civic duty). Voting is an innately pro-active measure, where you give direct voice to your beliefs, desires, perceived rights, etc. Even when your candidate loses, you know that your support for your candidate is still quantifiable and merits consideration from his opponent (well, in theory). Simply not buying the book will of course be effective in the very long term, given enough like-minded folks who do the same. But it also seems like giving up on the possibility that it could become good again. And silence isn't a very strong advocate when the remaining voices- even if they're few- are all clamoring how great these books are right now. The only feedback is positive. Emporer's New Clothes syndrome, kinda. In this sense, the voting analogy would sort of suggest that dropping the book would be more like quitting the country if one's candidate doesn't win (which I, of course, know isn't the direction you were heading in with it). At the same time, every decision will be driven with sales as the bottom line (basically heard that directly from an editor's mouth once), so there may be no other alternative. I don't know--- I'm as wishy-washy as they come sometimes. Possibly, if I'm intent on being proactive, then my subscription $$ are also buying me the right to get directly on Marvel's case a lot more than I've done in the past, and I just need to commit to doing that. Probably starting on their own boards would be a good plan. . .
Hey, thanks for giving me food for thought, eh?
HB
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Post by humanbelly on Feb 14, 2011 16:27:12 GMT -5
Thank you, owen-- I'd meant to mention this particular affront as well, but lost track. The voice for Wong-- and I want to phrase this carefully, 'cause I absolutely mean no disrespect-- is undeniably that of a snarky, old queen. Or possibly Bendis' idea of a snarky old queen. While there's plenty of room in the Marvel Universe for this personality profile, plastering it in such a completely unprecedented fashion all over Wong (whom, for god's sake, we ALL have come to know over the years-!) is- oh lord, how often have I said this- self-indulgent, lazy, disrespectful of previous writers' works, and indefensibly illegitimate. And it would be just as illegitimate had BMB decided to recast Wong in the mold of a born-again televangelist, or a smooth-talking lounge-lizard, or a devil-may-care frat boy-- the MU characters are PEOPLE to us, and the reckless rending, ripping, transmogrifying, and reconfiguring of their most rudimentary natures is a horrifying affront to (I hope) a significant number of us. Man-- I think I'd like to pass that senitment on up the ladder. To whom (or how-m?) would I communicate it? HB This is why people who grew up loving classic Marvel comics should hate BMB, IMHO. I actually consider him a scumbag, and that's strictly based on his ignorance of why I love Marvel comics. All you can do is stop buying his garbage. A co-worker recently admonished me, in fact, for not being more dilligent about "voting with my wallet"-- and I know you guys are right about that in the larger scope. But I still have misgivings that it may not have any effect. Heck, I've done that (through attrition) with X-men & Spiderman over the years--- I have yet to see Pete & MJ's marital status restored. I did it with Cap-- but Bucky's still wearing the uniform. Is it possible to actually engage the creative or editorial staff at Marvel about these issues that seem so destructive? It used to be-- but I don't have any sense of that characteristic back-&-forth relationship with them anymore. As much as I/we may rant away on a board like this, the eyes & ears here aren't ultimately the ones that need to witness our concerns. Any idea of the current receptivity up there? HB
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Post by humanbelly on Feb 13, 2011 12:31:11 GMT -5
finally wong turns up at the end speaking in exactly the same US hipster voice as everyone else and becomes the babysitter/live in help. Wong. If anyone is going to have a different voice/style it would surely be him . Thank you, owen-- I'd meant to mention this particular affront as well, but lost track. The voice for Wong-- and I want to phrase this carefully, 'cause I absolutely mean no disrespect-- is undeniably that of a snarky, old queen. Or possibly Bendis' idea of a snarky old queen. While there's plenty of room in the Marvel Universe for this personality profile, plastering it in such a completely unprecedented fashion all over Wong (whom, for god's sake, we ALL have come to know over the years-!) is- oh lord, how often have I said this- self-indulgent, lazy, disrespectful of previous writers' works, and indefensibly illegitimate. And it would be just as illegitimate had BMB decided to recast Wong in the mold of a born-again televangelist, or a smooth-talking lounge-lizard, or a devil-may-care frat boy-- the MU characters are PEOPLE to us, and the reckless rending, ripping, transmogrifying, and reconfiguring of their most rudimentary natures is a horrifying affront to (I hope) a significant number of us. Man-- I think I'd like to pass that senitment on up the ladder. To whom (or how-m?) would I communicate it? HB
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Post by humanbelly on Feb 13, 2011 7:30:54 GMT -5
Yep, this title's still just barely creeping along as well. Long, long, LOOOOOOONG dinner-date discussion sequence with Luke & Jessica in the current issue. I mean, if I were a much bigger fan of these two characters, I could probably buy into it-- but I have to ask myself, how much of the current fan-base could possibly be beating down Bendis' door, or flooding his in-box, saying "give us more, MUCH more, of the Cage family! THIS is what we buy this book for!!" As with the incurable Hood fixation, I have to assume that there's an extraordinary (and likely willful) blindness to the fact that just because BMB wants to write about certain characters, it doesn't follow that folks' want to read about them. The external antagonist for the issue is a single Doombot. In normal storytelling, this would have been a fine early element in a larger sequence of (interesting) events in a single issue. As martyp points out-- comic books are no longer being written for us, even though the charade of monthly publications continues.
Ohhhhhhh bitterbitterbitter is my mood of late. . .
HB
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Post by humanbelly on Feb 13, 2011 7:13:04 GMT -5
Back to the core Avengers title--- ol' HB is still reading it (as a public service. . . so that you won't have to). Just read #'s 8 & 9 together. JRjr's art has taken a turn for the somewhat better-- he's looking MUCH less rushed-- but I'll probably never fall in love with his rough, extremely minimalist style in a book where being able to tell the 18 or so on-hand Avengers apart is sort of a key element of success (Is it Steve Rogers? Is it Hawkeye? Is it Nova? Geeze-- is it Quicksilver? Wait-- is Quicksilver even here???).
The ongoing arc is that Parker. . . Lewis, is it?. . .y'know, The Hood. . . is systematically tracking down and swiping the Infinity Gems, to serve whatever end he has in mind. The forward momentum of the plot is a little hard to track, because much of what "happens" in the title is in fact told as flashbacks. Actual plot movement? In #8, the Illuminati re-convene (w/ Medusa replacing Black Bolt) and sort of bumble their way to the conclusion that something really bad is going on; while the Red Hulk tells the Avengers team in general about a really horrific fight he had w/ the Hood. In #9, the Illuminati are sort of shamed into admitting they exist in front of everyone, and then they all figure out that the Hood is stealing the Infinity Gems. I'm guessing that the result of issue #10 will be Spiderman and Wolverine asking "So what'll we do now?".
And yet, this is still far more readable than that horrible first arc we slogged through (w/ Kang & Apocalypse & the Maestro & the end of all Time, etc, etc, etc). But it's mostly just the same old ploy of focusing half the book on Parker's exploits while an absurdly HUGE complement of heroes are either searching for something, tailing other heroes, or literally just standing around listening to other heroes talk. I would swear this is a snarky counter-strike on Bendis' part against the criticism he SURELY received about that chaotic first arc. "Oh? They didn't like massive numbers of heroes battling senslessly up and down the timestream?? HA! Then I'll give them even MORE heroes battling NO ONE AT ALL for whole ISSUES AT A TIME!!!! See how they like THEM apples!!! (Criticize ME, will they? HAHAHAHAHAAA!)"
I mean, I may be exaggerating a bit, here. . .
HB
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Post by humanbelly on Feb 12, 2011 7:13:20 GMT -5
I go back and forth. On the one hand, I like having the back issues to grab and read just an individual issue if I want to. On the other hand, for an entire story arc, I'd rather have it collected and on a bookshelf instead of haivng to dig through a long box (after determining which long box contains said comics). Oh man, ain't that the truth. . . Misplaced my inventory/index during the ol' Christmas-wrapping frenzy down in the comic-book room, and now I'm helplessly adrift in an uncharted sea of long-boxes. . . Roy Thomas in the early 70's often made it a point to mention that he had bound editions of the entire Marvel run (well, up to that point). We have to assume that his wife finally curtailed that extravagance. Or, wait-- he & Jeanne divorced, didn't they? Hmm-- "It's those stupid bindings or ME, Boy-Genius! Which'll it be??" But wow, did you check out those prices, Woodside? I didn't do the math closely at all-- just glanced-- but I think a single long-box would run well over $1000--! (Ha! And then in their photos they use Howard the Duck and Kamandi as part of their examples! Kind of a hard investment to make there, eh? Mind you-- I admit that I do have the full runs of both of those time-lost titles. . . ;D) Ooooh it looks like it's appealing to a richer collector than I'll ever be. . . HB the Happy Miser
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Post by humanbelly on Feb 11, 2011 6:17:38 GMT -5
And one other thing I am still a fan of the Sentry, I don't care what anyone thinks about him being a useless character. That's all I'm gonna say but thanks for the birthday wishes. Nah, that's fine, G-Fist. On these very boards I've defended Rage more than once (someone who is consistently on that "least favorite Avenger" list) as a character whose origin & personal situation I liked a lot-- one who had a wealth of unexplored potential. In fact, I enjoyed both having him & the Sandman on the team for the very short time it occurred. I didn't follow either of them to their subsequent teams, but would love to see them return to the Avengers fold somehow, someday. Wildly unpopular with the majority of folks, sure-- but it looks like every character has someone they speak to. *sigh*-- you just have to have a thick-ish skin-- (Is this where I talk about how great the Hulk is. . . ? ;D) HB
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Post by humanbelly on Feb 10, 2011 17:16:43 GMT -5
I. . . I just can't believe this. I have been subscribed to the FF since the middle of John Byrne's run, and had bought it pretty regularly for years before that-- I have probably better than 90% of their original issues. This may be what makes me stop buying it. After decades. . . decades! There's just so much here to not like. Putting Spiderman on the team is a "bold new direction"- I'm sorry, "bold, new direction" is now synonymous w/ "blatant, shameless sales-pandering"--?? I assume, of course, that Wolverine will be one of those other guest-members they hint at. I mean, could any direction be more bold than that? Yes, the uniforms are awful-- I completely agree. Ben in particular looks like he's wearing underwear. Why pull Spidey out of his iconic outfit, exactly? And it's not even a good one-- it's just. . . different from his other two. That cover art is quite, quite awful. Reed looks like The Rock, and Sue looks she just stepped by after a "Barely Legal" photo-shoot. I just find it creepy. The figures generally look like they're rendered badly but shaded and colored well, which kind of masks it. At least Steve Epting will still be handling the interior art. But Spiderman? Really? The ONLY way that it can be justified is if they somehow use this whole "change the Marvel Universe" tack as a means to reverse the Brand New Day disaster--- THEN I could find some forgiveness here. But I don't even begin to hold out any hope for that kind of fair play. Ugh. My beloved lifetime hobby dies by a few degrees every day. . . HB
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