Summer...is OVER

And I'm glad, do you hear me? GLAD! Bwhahahahaa! Because I am one of those odd sorts of people who really don't like Summer all that much. Well, parts of it are nice, but I really loathe the mosquitoes, the humidity, and the heat. I like Spring,and believe it or not, I really don't mind Winter all that much, but gosh, I just LOVE Autumn. Well, except for raking leaves. But I love everything else! Of course it helps that I live in New England. We're rather famous for our Fall weather.

So I hope that everyone has a nice Labor Day. I attended my favorite niece's wedding in Rhode Island. She is also my only niece, but that's beside the point. We had steamers and lobster and corn on the cob and it was very nice. Which reminds me, that we haven't had a SuperHero wedding in a while now, the last one was Green Arrow and Black Canary's and that had a bit of a downer during the honeymoon. I REALLY want Guy and Ice to
get hitched, but we have to get through Blackest Night first, I imagine.

And here, for no reason whatsoever, other than I just like them, are Beetle and Booster fighting.



Aren't they adorable? I miss the boys, and I sure do hope that we end up wh Beetle, J'onn and Aquaman and Max coming back after all this War of Light and Blackest Night, and Revenants and stuff is over.

DC Butts Forever

Now this is why...in addition to a number of other factors...why I am no longer a Marvel Fan.



Frankly, that is one ginormous behind. It...it is not attractive. It does not sing to me. And it's attached to someone who is even more angsty and whiney than Kyle. Than Nightwing for God's Sake!

I would like to thank Bitter Andrew over at Armagideon Time, which is where I stole this particular scan. He has more, and they are hilarious.

Have a nice Labor Day Weekend!

Up [2009]

Director: Pete Docter & Bob Peterson
Cast: Edward Asner, Christopher Plummer, Jordan Nagai
Genre: Drama/Comedy
Rating: General
Comment: "Like chicken soup to the soul, warm and endearing..."

Very very rarely one can weep for a puppet. But that is exactly what Up is capable of, even though they are merely digital puppets, the feeling that they evoke is nothing short of authentic.

Up begins with a short animation which pretty much set the mood for the the entire movie. A sky full of clouds making all sorts of infants; ranging from humans to animals and even items at times. No dialogue takes place here between the clouds and the stork, but still the story is well-told.

Soon after, the feature presentation begins. Carl Fredricksen, a quiet but very imaginative boy befriends a tomboy, Ellie, whom would later become is life partner. Together, they share a dream of moving to Paradise Falls. However, they are not blessed with some of the best things in life , beginning with their inability to conceive a child and Carl eventually end up alone after Ellie dies. Soon after, Carl is reduced to be a disgruntled old man ignored by society. All that changes however, when he realises that he has nothing else to live for but a dream he once shared with Ellie. From there, he embarks on the biggest adventure of his life.

A strong appeal of the movie comes from the character Carl, despite the ill-tempered nature of the character, still he remains loveable. Combining that with the chemistry he has with a little boy he unintendedly befriends with, Russell makes for a memorable and no doubt one of the best animated features ever made.

All warmth and mushy-ness aside, the movie also deals with some of the most inspiring themes ever; it is never too late to pursue your dreams. Sometimes, it has nothing to do with bodily strength or even youth - all that you need is passion and the will to do it.

Points Calculation

The Good [+100]
- Good story
- Endearing
- Memorable

The Bad [-0]
- (None)

100 - 10 = 100 points

Whatever Happened to the Wayback Machine?

Well...that probably isn't its real name. Not to mention that I'm probably dating myself. But seriously, do you recall the infamous machine that the Guardians used waaaaaaaay back in issue 59 of Green Lantern, when they showed Hal an alternate reality, with Guy Gardner receiving the ring instead? It was a rather bizarre piece of machinery, and I've never quite understood how it would work, but apparently to the Guardians, it was better than Tivo. Precisely why they felt that it was necessary to stroke Hal's ego even further, is beyond me.

But I cannot help wondering, what ever happend to this wonderful piece of equipment? It could have come in awfully handy with the current crisis, perhaps even giving the Guardians some sort of inkling of what was coming, or could be coming, or could possiby be avoided, if they followed a different path. Of course Oa has been destroyed a time or two, so I suppose that the Machine was probably destroyed as well, but still...you would think that they would have SOME sort of warranty on the thing. How else would they watch their Soaps?

I can't help but imagine the fun that Hal, Guy, Kyle and John could have with some equipment like this. Get the boys together with some popcorn and beer, and let them go all Mystery Science Theatre 3000 on it. John and Guy in particular would be hilarious. Kyle would enjoy it, because he's hip, if not too bright. Most of the jokes would probably go over Hal's head, but he'd still have fun hanging out with his homies. Have Kilowog and Salaak substituting for Tom Servo and Crow, and the circle would be complete.

Now THAT'S a thought. The Wayback Machine is probably disassemble, and was stuffed away in Guy's storage garage, which means that it's probably back on Oa and just waiting to be reassembled again.

Oa gets cable...right?

Tiny Reviews, for a Tiny Week

That...was a very small week for me. Oh I went to the store of course, but it really was hardly even worth it, except that it's WEDNESDAY, and I am nothing if not a creature of habit.

I did pick up all of Three Books, not counting Wednesday Comics. I also picked up last weeks copy of Wednesday Comics, because I forgot to, the previous week.

Final Crisis: Run!...This has been nothing short of hilarious, at least I think so. It is so dumb, and so outrageous, and I love it. I perfectly understand poor Firestorm's reaction to how they keep getting trounced by this idiot, and John Stewart points out that it's BECAUSE he's an amateur...he does things that no sane criminal would do, and no superhero would expect. Although the remarks he made about the smell of roasted Martian may come back to bite him in the butt.

Jonah Hex #47...The game of wits against Turnbull continues, as Jonah, Bat Lash and Tallula shoot a lot of people and banter along with way. Good violent fun.

Justice League: Cry for Justice #3...I don't care what anybody on the message boards say...I think that this is a hoot. It's so bad that it's good. I do have to say that the art is awfully pretty, although the artist does seem to have a thing for showing Supergirl's breasts...a lot. Ray Palmer is completely out of character, Freddy is a horny teenager, and Ollie and Hal are simply idiots. Mikaal and Bill seem to be having a good time beating up random baddies. Prometheus is not a nice man.

The best part of course, is that the Shade shows up. And Bobo Benetti! And Charity O'Dare! Woohoo! I haven't seen the Shade in ages. I really really hope that he continues to show up.

This mini is completely ridiculous and over the top, and the dialogue will make you cringe, and yet...and yet...it makes me smile.

Wednesday comics were large and loud and wonderful as usual. I'm going to give the Metamorpho pages of the Periodic Tables to my budding Biology Teacher of an oldest daughter. Now THAT'S the way to learn chemistry! Batman is fun, Kamandi is so gorgeous that I almost swoon, even Superman seems to be getting his act together. Hal and Dill are in a bit of a pickle...Aliens! Adam Strange gets his act together, and Doctor Mid-Nite's owl has an unfortunate run-in with Krypto and Streaky. Metal Men is still fun, and Sgt. Rock is finally getting off his ass and attempting to beat up Nazis, while Barry and Iris are having one HECK of an evening. Catwoman and Jason Blood are on the date from hell, while Hawkman is on the phone trying to rustle up some help against a tyrannosaurus, and getting the runaround from Batman. So...Much...Goodness!

Come to Think of It...

...it has been quite a while since I made fun of Batman. There was his whole "death" thing going on, and I suppose it would have been a bit tasteless, not to mention insensitive to mock his demise. But hey, it's been a few months now, and we ALL know that he's due back any day now.

So...



I do not know who Whitey is, nor do I know exactly what Batman has in mind for him. For him AND his clothes! Maybe this is just how Bruce Wayne does his shopping. All those Bat-gimmicks can run into some serious money.
Maybe Whitey owes him money, and he's planning on auctioning off his clothes. Maybe Batman is just a huge old pervert, how the heck would I know

But it does make one want to know exactly what is going on...doesn't it?

So, I Hear That There's A Rumor

A rumor that Girls are actually invading Comicbookdom. The Twilight people are to blame for this of course. I have never read Twilight, nor have I seen the movie. Moreover I have NO plans to do either. My youngest daughter did read the book, and laughed hysterically throughout, which is not what I think the author had in mind. Nevertheless, I am pleased as punch that all the young and not so young Twilight fans showed up at the Convention and had themselves a fine old time.

There are however, those who were NOT amused by this invasion. Girls! They might...they might have Cooties! At least, that is the impression that I get from reading the various Message Boards...and sniggering myself sick in the process. I imagine that quite a number of fans, were happy to welcome newcomers to their little hobby, but there is a certain sub-group of fans, who live in horror that their own pursuits may become more mainstream. Because you see, Girls Don't Read Comic Books. Or, if they do, then they don't read the RIGHT kind of Comic Books. They're those Twilight people, or they read Manga, or Sandman and Strangers In Paradise or something. Or their boyfriends got them into it. They don't read Superheroes, EVERYONE knows that.

Except of course, for the ones that DO read Superheroes. Some of them even blog about it.



We're coming. And we're playing with your toys.

Heh.