You Could Win Things? Cool Things......

Well, I help out with a little podcast called Clobberin' Time, where we discuss comics, pop culture, book binding, gardening occassionaly, and as of last week, Jim's physical fitness routine.

We announced on the newest episode that we would be giving away some prizes. Here's the rules, and the prize, as seen at this location on the Clobbberin' Time Blog.........

"Hi everyone, just wanted to post the details of the newest Clobberin’ Time contest. Send us an email with your own funny/awkward comic book related story and we’ll pick the best 3 to share on the air. The three winners will also get a brand-new, sealed, mint-condition DVD from stand up comic Mike Birbiglia!"

Send your stories to this email address: clobber@wesn.org.

Jonathan Hickman Interview!

This interview has been a long time coming. Due to my own technical issues, I haven't been able to get it posted until now, but I think now that it's up you'll enjoy it immensely.

I caught up with Mr. Hickman after reading the Nightly News, his first comic book mini series that was published through Image........

Q: Your first foray into comics came with the Nightly News. What made you want to tackle the topic of media bias (a widely, and heatedly debated topic) in your first outing?

Jonathan Hickman: Honestly, I just thought it would make for a cool story and I was trying pretty hard to not to do something that was 'standard fare'

Q: Your art style is a very detailed mix of graphic design and regular comic book art. How did you develop this blend, and what kinds of obstacles did you face along the way?

JH: Well, that's the great thing about Image comics. Once they approve it, I can pretty much do what I want. So there were, and continue to be, no obstacles

Q: Seeing as you have a very unique style, I was wondering how long it usually takes you to do a full page from beginning to end. Some of the fastest conventional artists can do multiple pages per day, but then again they aren't as involve with the rest of the process of producing the rest of the book like you are. So approximately how long does a page take you?

JH: Around a day and a half. It also depends on if it's all analog, digital or some kind of mix. I try and keep things as organic as possible. Honestly, I'd kill to have a two month window for each issue... I feel like it could be so much better.

Q: I know you did a story for Marvel in the Legion of Monsters books, but what other Big Two characters would you be interested in working on, and why?

JH: Stuff I grew up reading. Legion. X-men. Titans.

Q: The books you have done so far have both been scripted and drawn by you. I assume it makes it easier to implement your style of storytelling in your art when you're working from your own script. Do you think you would be as successful with your artistic storytelling if you were working from someone else's script?

JH: Absolutely. I've got two books coming out (TRANSHUMAN and RED MASS FOR MARS) that I'm only writing. They're coming out great - I'm very proud of them.

Q: What can you tell us about your upcoming ongoing book A Red Mass for Mars (drawn by Ryan Bodenheim)? Sell the people who are fence sitters.....

JH: It's badass. Hands down the best limited super-hero book out this year! Go buy it!

Q: Pax Romana just launched a couple weeks ago. What types of things did you try to do differently with this series than you did with the Nightly News?

JH: The fact that much of it is painted. After the Nightly News was so digital, I really wanted some beautiful organic pages. And, of course, the huge genre shift.

Q: What teases can you give us about the remaining three issues of Pax Romana?

JH: They take place over 50 years and the last issue is ridiculous with all that happens.

In the back of the first issue, you mentioned wanting to be able to come back to the Pax Romana universe in the future. Do you have stories already in your head for what you would want to do when you return, and can you give us an idea of what some of those stories might entail?

JH: Yes, I have tons of stuff planned. No, can't tell what the stories are about. It would give away the ending of the first series.

Q: You've received praise from every corner of the comic book community for your work. People are saying that you are showing us what comics will look like in ten years. Does all this praise make it hard for you to think about changing stuff up, and possibly evolving your style in the future?

JH: No. It encourages me to keep pushing as hard as I can.

Q: My final question is what is your dream project? Would it be creator owned, or "Big Two" related? Would you fly solo, or collaborate (and if so, with who), etc.?

JH: Swear to god, in my mind my dream project is what ever I've got coming up next. Nobody's out there forcing me to take mediocre jobs.

Mr. Hickman also writes a very good column for www.Ifanboy.com called Concentric Circles that I think is worth your time......

TEASER AWESOMENESS!

There it is, the official teaser trailer for my zombie movie now going by the title of SCHOOL OF THE DEAD......

One Sentence Reviews: 1/31/2008

Well, before I get to the point of this post, I would first like to mention that I missed celebrating the one year anniversary of the Comics Corner at http://www.pipelinernd.com/. So, here I am to say that I have been doing this for one year, so if you feel so inclined, I do take checks and money orders.
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I decided to start reviewing comic books every week again! Hey, I am supposedly running a comic book website, so I guess that seems like a good idea. How am I going to do this when I purchase a ridiculous amount of books each week? Easy, just write one sentence summing up my feelings on each and every book. Not only is it taking the easy way out, but it also allows me to say that I actually am a comic book "reviewer." Everybody wins (especially me). On with it........
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Action Comics #861

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"This story belongs in a Legion book, not in Action Comics, and Gary Frank's art is the only thing that's keeping me on board."
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Avengers: Initiative #9

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"This continues to be the best Avengers book on the market, and truth be told, it only has one Avenger in it (the wife beating one)."
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Batman #673

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"Tight, sharp storytelling that seems to be the best synthesis of Grant Morrison 'trippiness' and conventional Batman that we've seen so far in his disjointed run."
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Captain America #34

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"I don't care who's in the Cap costume, because no matter what, I can trust Brubaker and Epting to deliver like they did here."
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Captain America: The Chosen #6

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"There is no difference between the plot in issue 1 and the plot in issue 6, nuff' said."
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Countdown #13

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"It looks like the last chunk of Countdown is going to rock, but I won't forget that I was led on for months and months to get to this point."
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Green Lantern #27

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"See Captain America #34 above, and just insert Johns and McKone/Reis for Brubaker and Epting."
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Mighty Avengers #8

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"This is all Frank Cho's fault."
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New Avengers Annual #2

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"Things are being shaken up, and it feels like Bendis really has a plan for this book (as opposed to Mighty Avengers)."
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Spider-man: With Great Power #1

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"A wonderful balance between nostalgia and modern storytelling, and Tony Harris can frickin' draw."
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Y: The Last Man #60

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"Everything comes full circle, and upon multiple readings, I have come to appreciate what Vaughan did here (this issue deserves more than a single sentence, so be on the lookout for something more in th next couple days)."
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A very solid week, this was.
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Despite a couple blemishes, I would have to say this was the best week of January shipping items.

Why the Punisher: War Zone is Going to be GREAT!

The first Punisher movie starring Thomas Jane received mixed reviews. I felt that even though there was a redeeming quality or two to the movie (the Russian fight anyone?), that overall, it felt like a hugely inconsistent flick. First the filmmakers decide to kill not only Frank Castle's wife and kid, but his WHOLE FRIGGIN' FAMILY! So it seems like we are going to see some brutal violence at that point. Then, they turn around and film the rest of the movie with a more timid and watered down tone. So in the end, I was left confused.



Now from what I've read, the next Punisher movie is being scoffed at already. If there was one thing that people liked about the first movie, it was Thomas Jane as Frank Castle. When it was announced that he had dropped out, hope among fans for a good sequel seemed to disappear with him. I'm here to tell you why the new Punisher movie (AKA Punisher: War Zone), isn't a joke, and why you should be lining up to see it when it opens on September 12th, 2008.......

Awesome Ennis

Director Lexi Alexander has time and time again commented that the main source of inspiration for this movie is the Punisher Max title written by Garth Ennis. Ennis is the undisputed king of all things violent in comics, and he is obviously a perfect fit for the Punisher. So the fact that Alexander is looking to adapt his uber violent and gritty version of frank Castle to the silver screen is promising. It wouldn't be fair if I didn't mention that the first movie was based loosely on Ennis's "Welcome Back Frank" Punisher arc. However, the lackluster handling of certain aspects of Ennis's story is essentially what tore the movie down, and added to the inconsistent feel (Spacker Dave, Mr. Bumpo, and weird mousy chick anyone?).

Ray Stevenson

He's perfect as Frank Castle. Hell, he basically was the Roman Centurion soldier version of Castle on the HBO series ROME. He has the presence, and the intensity to bring Castle to life. I think he will surprise a lot of people, and make them forget about Jane's rendition of the character.

The New "Costume"

The word costume is stretching it. This time around, Castle will be going for functionality over looks. The more gritty, and realistic reasoning for his garb being the way it is will help give the movie that grounded in reality feeling that a film like this should have. Hopefully they'll ditch the weird introduction of the skull logo that was used in the first movie.

Bloody Brilliance

Like I mentioned earlier, I don't want to see a faux-violent Punisher movie. I want blood and guts everywhere. In the newest issue of Wizard, director Lexi Alexander mentions that the movie will be a "Hard R." Amen sister. The first Punisher was rated R, but probably only missed the PG-13 cut by a cuss word or two. So this time around, look for things to be cranked to 11 so to speak.

This film is going to sneak up on all of you, so just remember who told you first (Me, duh)!

Riffin' Rick Remender Interview

Murder, tubing, and Kentucky Fried Chicken. That's the kind of life that Rick Remender leads........actually, Rick Remender doesn't do any of those things (well, at least not the murder part). Remender spends his days writing books like Fear Agent, The End League, Crawl Space, and The Atom, and spends his nights traipsing from rooftop to rooftop, dispensing his own ruthless brand of justice. Check out the hardcore, extreme, and super foil cover variant edition of my recent interview with him below.......

Q: I've read that you started out working in animation. This seems to be a bit of a trend for comic book writers and artists these days, with guys like Paul Dini and Dwayne McDuffie making that same jump. What are the biggest differences between the two mediums that you have to combat, and what are some things that make the transition a relatively smooth one?

RR: Well, working in animation you learn all the things that make for a successful freelancer, respect for deadlines, respect for co-workers, and basic production skills. I taught myself most every aspect of making comics in a trial by fire. I just made comics. At first I self-published a silly little book called Captain Dingleberry with some friends from Fox Animation. I had my first foray into writing, penciling, inking, zip toning (anyone remember cutting out your zip film to tone the pages?) and lettering a seven issue comic series and learned a ton. It's the only way to learn how to do comics; you do them over and over until they start to get better. I learned more about marketing the comics from my time managing a comic shop in Phoenix when I was in college.

Q: You also have ties to the music industry, having illustrated multiple covers to albums. How did you get involved with that, and do you have a personal
favorite album cover that you illustrated?

RR: When I was living in San Francisco I was in the punk scene and met a lot of great people and eventually started working for Fat Mike and his label Fat Wreck Chords. They were great and hired me to do a ton of stuff including a Black Heart Billy comic in their catalogs. Black Heart Billy is still one of my favorite creations, Kieron Dwyer and I had a blast doing that. I wish more people had seen it. As for my favorite art, I'm pretty happy with the NOFX: Never Trust a Hippy EP art. I've seen I shitload of folks wearing it on tee-shirts and had a few people send in tattoos as well.

Q: You've got your hands in quite a few different genres with your comic book writing. You write horror type books (Crawl Space), sprawling space action adventures (Fear Agent), and super hero work (upcoming Atom work, and End League). Do you prefer any genre to the others (if so why), or do you enjoy them all equally as if they were your children?

RR: I like writing Fear Agent best on most days. It just flows easier for me. But The End League, The Atom and Crawl Space have all become neck in neck for second place. I'm having so much fun writing these books, they all help me scratch a different itch. I don't see any difference in genre other than the window dressing and familiar trappings. What is the real difference between The Sopranos and Deadwood? Dialect, time and place. The rest is drama, violence, death… story is story.

Q: You've had a chance to work with Tony Moore, a guy whose art is great, but who isn't always the fastest. Some guys are able to schedule themselves in a smart manner, such as Tony Moore, while others not so much……since you are both a writer and an artist, and have dealt with things from “both sides of the table” so to speak, what are your feelings on late books/late artists/missing deadlines?

RR: I've learned that late books kill. I've also learned that artistic integrity in the work you produce has a longer lasting benefit than a piece of pap that came out on time. We all work as hard as we can and make, what I feel, are some of the best comics on the stands. Are they sometimes late? Yes. Are they worth the wait? I think so. That's not to say we don' take our deadlines seriously, we do.

Q: I'm a big fan of Fear Agent, and I think one of the strongest characteristics is the callbacks and homage's to classic genres of yesteryear. From the space opera aspect, to the war story tone, I think this book does a great job giving everybody a little something different to like. Was that the plan for the series from the outset, or did this idea grow as you went along?

RR: Yeah, the idea was a modern take on the genre's EC Comics was best at; Sci-Fi, War, Western and horror, or a mix there of. Volume 5 of the series is a Sci-Fi Western arc that Tony and I are dong and I can't wait to get to it.

Q: Since Fear Agent moved to Dark Horse, the new format of the book seems to be that of one mini series following another, as opposed to an ongoing with a continuing issue count. Why was this change made?

RR: It's actually both. We had the ongoing numbering on the inside for Last Goodbye and Twelve Steps in One but readers complained so as of Hatchet Job we both the ongoing numbering and the arc numbering listed on the cover. The fans have all been very effusive and unanimous in preferring this format. I think we'll see more and more books carry this on in the future. It helps new readers know where the current arc is while helping establish the chronological order of the arcs.

Q: End League #1 debuted on January 4th, and now that fans have the first issue in their hands, what teasers can you leave us with for the upcoming issues?

RR: It's nice to hear so many people are enjoying the book. The sales and reviews have been phenomenal. It guarantees we'll be around for a long time to come. We have a plan in place to make the book monthly by the summer so I expect it to just build from here. As for upcoming issues, let's see don't want to give any spoilers… well, everyone dies… eventually.

Q: In a similar vein to the last question, what more can we expect from Crawl Space in the near future?

RR: I can't tell you the name of our next series, as I'm afraid the high concept will be grabbed. Kieron and I have it outlined and he's doing designs as I write. It's going to be great. We hope to roll on it this summer.

Q: And finally to round everything out, what can we look forward to in fear Agent?

RR: Hatchet Job takes some pretty wild turns in the next few issues, focusing on Mara and her motivations for handing humanity over to the Dressites. Lot's of dead characters there as well and a cliff hanger no one will see coming. Basically, Heath Huston finds himself marooned on the desolate Planet West. A stranger in a strange place peppered with gun slinging robots, venomous mutants and buxom cowgirls. It's high noon in dead space.

Q: Recently, it was announced that you and Pat Oliffe are going to be the new creative team for the All New Atom title at DC Comics. You're following up Gail Simone on that title, and the story was initially outlined by Grant
Morrison. What is it like to follow up names like that for your first DC writing assignment?

RR: It's great. The foundation Grant and Gail set here is a load of good fun and I'm 100% confident that what Pat and I are doing is going to make folks excited. I have three issues in the can and Pat is well underway with art, I'm proud of the work and proud to be associated with this project and team.

Q: If you had to use three words to describe what you have planned for the Atom, what would they be?

RR: The Enemy Within.

Q: Final Question: What's your new years resolution for 2008, and how do you plan on going about accomplishing it?

RR: One day in May I plan on doing some murder, rape, more murder, some drug abuse all followed by a tarot card reading before going to the lake to eat Kentucky Fried Chicken and listen to ELO while tubing downstream to where my buddy Skeeter parked our Bronco where we'll take a moment to reflect on the evils of the Carter administrations while skirting around the homo-erotic undertones of our trip (which hangs thick in the air in equal proportion to the snugness of our OP shorts) before sliding into some agonizingly, faux-intellectual, self-examination in alleviate the anxiety before spiraling into a shame cycle and self-medicating with more fried chicken. Just catchin' up on shit I've been putting off.

A Bizarre Week of Comics....

Last week was ridiculous when it came down to the sheer volume of comics that came out (I bought 17 books!?!?!). This week falls on the other end of the spectrum (only 6 books that came out this week were in my stack). However, I did get a chance to read some stuff that doesn't hit till next week! Let's start off with the one that everyone wants to hear about (SPOILERS AHEAD!).......

Hulk #1 By Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness

• This issue is hard for me to review. On the one hand, Loeb once again couldn't resist to throw 18,000 guest stars at the wall and see which ones stuck. This issue alone features appearances by Doc Samson, She Hulk, Iron Man, Thunderbolt Ross, Maria Hill, and The Winter Guard (Russia's super team). The one positive to this is that he wasn't able to do his patented inner monologue that he loves so much. In the end it feels like he was crowding this issue with characters to artificially make it more important. The Hulk does in fact appear in this comic, but only through a series of "potential occurrences" which are surmised by Doc Samson. Also, it would be good to note that the Hulk is most definitely Green, not red. The "potential occurrences" deal with a fight between the Hulk and the Abomination, who the Hulk ends up killing with a gun........yep, that's right, a gun. The identity of the Hulk looks to be Rick Jones, but Loeb might be throwing people for a loop. Bruce Banner does make an appearance on the last page, so I think it's safe to say that this new Hulk isn't him. Ed McGuinness does his usual stellar job with the art. This guy was born to draw the Hulk (maybe not the Hulk with a gun though). Overall, this issue just seemed like a weird way to start off the story arc. It by no means makes me want to avoid the rest of the arc, because damn do I want to see Loeb explain why the heck the Hulk would use a gun. So on a scale of 1-10, this is a soft 7.

The Twelve #1 By JMS and Chris Weston

• This was very well done. JMS doesn't waste any time, and he did a great job of making this very reader friendly. These characters are most definitely z listers, but JMS makes me care about each of them in just 22 pages. The concept is very clever, and intriguing. There is a certain Captain America "man out of time" aspect to the characters as well. I think this issue is most successful because it blends story elements we've seen before together into something cumulative that we haven't seen before. Chris Weston's art is pitch perfect. This was the best book I read this week, and it will probably be the best book that comes out next week. The only thing that scares me is that it's 12 issues long. That's a long time to maintain this level of storytelling. If you want to read a good comic to wash away the taste of One More Day, then this is a good bet.

My quick thoughts on the rest of the books I purchased.......

• Detective Comics was a much better ending to the Ra's crossover. Great writing, good art, and a conclusion! What a novel idea!


• Uncanny X-Men was another solid chapter in the Messiah Complex x-over, but they're running out of installments to tie this all up......


• Countdown felt forced, and the Monitor seems to be acting way out of character. This one just confused the hell out of me, and made me wonder exactly what they were thinking when they planned this whole thing out.


• Thunderbolts needs to come out more often, because it never disappoints.


• Ultimate Human was surprisingly good. I enjoyed it, and the title at least makes sense now. Great art by Cary Nord as well.


• Teen Titans Year 1 looks like it's going to be a retread of a generic story, but this time with great art by Karl Kerschl.

What a week........