Just a block away..

I don't think even the most ardent supporters of The Simpsons (of which I am one) would argue that the last few seasons have suffered from a decline in quality. I think trying to produce The Simpsons Movie at the same time as the seasons of the show really put a strain on all involved and the show suffered for it.
Having said that, last night's episode, E. Pluribus Wiggum,was a fantastic return to form.
I know it originally aired in January, but I didn't catch it until last night, so it was new to me.
Feel free to enjoy the entire episode courtesy of Hulu.com.

With my heart hanging out..

Wow.
Yes.
Ray Park as Snake Eyes.
For real.
They've got me. I'm officially excited for this movie now.

Everyone shows me faces...

This is a picture of Batman I did in the Powerpuff Girls style a long time ago that a buddy of mine at the time animated Flash style.
His name is Stephen Bowcutt and he's an incredible artist, and though I have no idea where he is or what he's up to, I hope he's doing well.

Caught in a nasty place..

The 5 Most Insane Celebrity Comic Book Cameos
Yeah, I'll do two link posts to Cracked.com articles in one day.
I'm not scared.

Not a production or art error..

20 Insane Supervillain Schemes In Flowchart Form
I don't know if you've caught on or not yet, but Cracked.com is hilarious.

And they think it's pretty cool, man..

Know what else is weird looking?
Safari on Windows.

I was pretty sure you did..

Achewood may very well be the funniest thing on the internet.

If only I had more time..

So, in case you haven't heard, Michael Cera is in "final negotiations" to play SCOTT PILGRIM.
I guess he’s popular at the moment after a string of two successful movies and one cancelled television show, but this is awful, awful casting.
Don't get me wrong, I like the guy and I’ll be happy to be proven wrong, but I can’t imagine this guy fighting a girl scout, let alone Ramona’s 7 evil ex-boyfriends.
Fuck, I can't even imagine this guy raising his voice!
He's likeable, but not Scott Pilgrim likeable. He doesn't have the charisma to pull off a magical, video game style dance fight. I'm sorry, but he just doesn't.
What's worse is if this does happen then he's going to be who everyone thinks of when they hear the name "Scott Pilgrim". Guh.

Human again..

I don't know if the show's going to be any good, mostly because most of Marvel's cartoons since the 90s (some would argue it goes back further than that) have been awful, but for the moment, I will say this promotional art for the new Iron Man cartoon looks very slick.

As I look down..

Now you don't have to bother reading Kick Ass.

I do not know what to do..

The most unintentionally funny cover I've seen in some time.
Everything about this cover pretty much cracks me up.

Honestly, isn't it enough...

Say what you will about Marvel's treatment of Spider-Man as of late (and I have), but those are some mighty fine looking covers courtesy of Mike McKone and Marcos Martin.

Ah-ha! That's the secret!

You have to have the initials M.M.!

I don't know what I'm to say..

Happy Valentine's Day!
What?
Oh, I'm sorry, Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Enjoy it with this trivia sketch of my favorite loveable green monster.

Two step, two step..

Art I'm proud to own.

Aquaman Vol. 6 #25
Page 17.
Pencils : Patrick Gleason
Inks : Mick Gray

I bought this from Patrick Gleason himself at San Diego Comic-Con last year.
He didn't believe me when I told him, but he was one of the people I was most excited to meet... and I also met Darth Vader and Power Girl. So, you know, that says something.
Anyway, he was cool to Curt and I as we talked to him about whatever goofy comic business we talked to him about, and he's even dropped by this blog a time or two (which I, of course, completely geeked out about in private).
I think his run on Aquaman (though not nearly long enough) was the best the character has probably ever looked and this incredibly dynamic page is a perfect example.

I hate that..

I drew mc chris on one of our trivia answer sheets the night that Gary Gygax had died.
I asked Curt what mc should be saying and that's what he told me to write.
Therefore, this is Curt and I's comic memorial to Gary Gygax.
For the record, I hate my "coloring" on this, but I didn't want it to just be pencils.

This is what we do.

Okay, folks.
It's time to step up and do something worth doing.
I didn't really talk about it on here, but something very similar happened to my youngest brother last year, so this is close to home for me.
If you're reading this, it most likely means you're a certain kind of person.
The kind of person that believes in heroes.
The kind of person that believes a man can fly.
The kind of person that believes when you're given the opportunity to help out, you should.
This is what it's about.
This is what we do.
Let's make it happen.

Too much, too young, too fast..

Look at that picture.
I cannot produce a reason for why you shouldn't be watching Legion of Super Heroes.

UPDATE : It's worth mentioning (not really) that this was my 100th post of 2008.
And it's only March! My goal of 400 posts may very well end up happening!
It's also worth mentioning that two posts in a row had pictures of oversized green dudes. Truly, I am fighting the good fight.

A very long title..

The trailer has finally been let loose.
Looks like a lot of monster mashing fun.
I don't know what I think of this new incredibly vein-y Hulk though.
Whatever problems the Ang Lee flick had, I always thought it had a good take on how the Hulk should look. Big. Very big, in fact, but not like he spends all his non-smashing time in the gym. Maybe that's just me though.

Like a criminal..

Okay, Dreamworks.. you got me.
Via Jay Stephens.
(PS I love Jay Stephens.)

Sad news.

Dave Stevens has passed away.

Just smile, Loretta..

If you have not played this game...

Rest assured, that I do not have the verbal capacity or writing accumen to truly explain it's greatness.
It is both a marvel and a thing to be gawked at with wonder.
It is also a thing at which one must yell completely unintelligible strings of swears. I mean, it's not like they even give you a choice.
It's beautiful.

For those of you have played it, I'll just leave you with this and know that nothing else needs to be said about the game or Lucas' awesomeness.

PK MURDER!

Make it go faster...

The final issue of the Atom Eve mini-series came out this last week, and my only complaint with the series was that it was only 2 issues long.
I can't speak for the rest of the comic buying populace, but I'd have been more than happy to have this be a monthly book from this creative team.

Pencils by Nate Bellegarde. Colors by Rico Renzi.
Since it doesn't look like that'll be happening though, I'd like to go ahead and second Brian Andersen's recommendation that Benito and Nate be allowed to take over Supergirl.
Probably won't be happening either, but boy, that'd be swell.

All I ever wanted..

Again with the Comics has put up an excellent explanation of why I don't give a shit about the X-Men anymore. I don't think Brian intended to explain how I felt, it is my understanding that he's explaining his own feelings. Fortunately for me though, I couldn't have written my mind any better. He has my thanks for saving me some work.

There will be no discrimination..

Mike Laughead is one of my favorite artists, and he's got this shirt up for voting on Threadless.
I'd like to help him to victory.
You can be a part of that.

We are hiding..

Boy, you said it.
Via.

Is oh so wonderful..

I figured now was as good a time as any to post this colored version.
Tried something different.

Grant Morrison made me cry.

"Yeah, see, Superman sees the best in us, including Luthor. And that’s why he’s sad or confused sometimes, because he also sees us messing up, being angry and jealous and self-destructive. He sees the best, he thinks human beings are amazing, and he wants us all to rise up to his level, become superhuman and go off into space or whatever, but his ideals are constantly running up against basic human problems and inadequacies, including his own.

And I think that’s what makes him great. He just keeps tirelessly trying to make things better, to be a role model for everyone. People take him for granted – he’s always dealing with characters who think he’s an idiot, or irrelevant or who just don’t like his plain morality and can’t see that he’s just a genuinely good guy slightly hampered by a fear of forcing his ideas on people." - Grant Morrison on Superman via Newsarama

You're a woman of the moment..

In case you haven't seen yet, several cats are out of the bag.

Those days were so amazing..

SHAZAM!
Just follow the link and click the lightning bolt.
You'll be glad you did.

It's gotta go..

I think anyone who's even casually visited this blog knows that I think comics are awesome.
The thing is though, sometimes they are not.


All-Star Batman & Robin, The Boy Wonder #9
This comic used to just be horrible.


Now, it's utterly reprehensible.
If you haven't read it, and don't know what's going on there, that's "the goddamn" Batman (TGB) beating the shit out of Robin.
Robin (whom I don't mind reminding you and Frank Miller) is a 12 year old little boy.
It was one thing when they were just having TGB be a jerk to Robin and a total asshole to everyone else, but this really crosses a line.
Between this and what Frank Miller thinks passes for gender relations (the scenes between Wonder Woman and the male JLA-ers, TGB and Black Canary's make-out session, etc.) this comic is an abomination and a blight on the comics industry.
This issue really makes me wish Curt and I had followed through on our plans to find Frank Miller at Comic-Con and punch him in the face.
It would have also been nice to have called him a "little snot" while doing it.

You are dead..

Geez!
Clearly this guy was playing a much different version of Super Mario Bros. than I was.

Why listen to me..

Bill Hader is entirely too funny. I would also have no problem watching him do a show every week as Vincent Price.
This is shortened from it's original airing, but I couldn't find the longer version at the moment... so just enjoy it as is. I mean, it's free.

Stop it immediately..

I would watch this show with a devotion and fanatacism most would find alarming.
My thanks to Maggie for finding this clip for me.

Maybe you don't know..

Let's continue to celebrate Superman's 70th birthday!

I don't know about much...

If you haven't been visiting Destination : Blog!, you've been missing out on my "epic" three-part series, The Challenging!
For your convienence I will now provide you with links.
The Challenging ... Part One!
The Challenging ... Part Two!
The Challenging ... The Final Chapter!

If you have been visiting D:B!, congratulations! You are a snappy, young go-getter whom everyone wishes they could be more like.

Love don't come so easily..

Superman.
Flying.
He does that a lot.
Today is his birthday. Kinda.
Just a quick sketch. I based this on a shot from the scene in Superman Returns when he's chasing the double-decker jumbo jet/space shuttle combo unit down.

Good news, everyone!

Everyone over to Destination : Blog! on the double for the exciting news!

You die and have a nice day..

Some kind of battling aliens or bugs or something.
These were done in one of the books Joey brings along to trivia.
One is quoting Hot Rod and the other is quoting Queen, so clearly, whatever they are, they have good taste.

We thought of that...

Now we're talking!

I couldn't find him..

Caleb poses a question I too have often wondered which is , "Why is it so hard to keep a Mister Miracle series going?"

Is it a problem with not receiving a favorable enough reception from critics?

Okay, so critics aren't the problem.

Neither is a shortage of stylish handbags or scintillating sound effects.

Panels courtesy of Jack Kirby's Mister Miracle #1 (1971).

England's got a new queen..

Reasons To Keep Living
All Star Superman Vol. 2 will be here in August.
Unless it's running behind schedule.
If that happens, you'll just have another reason to continue living a little longer.

I was trotting along...

Go Team Venture!
Stephen DeStefano is going to teach us all how to draw The Venture Bros.


Garfield minus Garfield.
Yet another way to make Garfield more interesting.
This version goes even further than previous ones that simply omitted Garfield's dialogue/thought bubbles and pulls Garfield out of the comic completely.

Thanks to Newsarama for bringing both of these to my attention.

It's so enlightened of you..

The Dick Tracy Museum is closing due to lack of visitors.

That is really depressing to me.

Anyone interested in a roadtrip to Woodstock, Illinois?

Via Newsarama.

You're gonna get your parade..

Even more Spirit-y goodness from Toy Fair 2008.
This should be available in a finer comic shoppe near you this June courtesy of Dark Horse. For more shots of this, plus pictures of The Spirit full-sized statue click here.

Volts to spare...

Is it just me or does this book look completely awesome?

That's a rhetorical question, because it obviously looks so awesome.

She'll see I'm not so tough..

It's time for yet another new feature.

My Favorite Comics Ever.


JLA #84-89 (collected as JLA Vol. 14 “Trial By Fire”)
Joe Kelly writes a perfect Batman, shows just how powerful a player Martian Manhunter is in the DCU, and comes up with multiple Grant Morrison-sized/OMG/character defining moments for pretty much every member of the Justice League.

Doug Mahnke’s art is absolutely incredible. I mean, there’s no other way to say it. There are totally scan-worthy panels on pretty much every page of every issue.
The guy is just an amazing artist capable of making Superman look “super” whether he’s sitting in a lawnchair at J’onn’s backyard BBQ or racing across the planet to chase down the last of several hundred nuclear missiles the JLA must stop.
Even more importantly perhaps is the fact that he makes characters like The Atom and Major Disaster look every bit as epic and impressive as Superman and Batman. (And Joe Kelly does his part to make them seem just as important and integral to the story as “The Big Guys”.)

Oh, and did I mention that the only person who can save the JLA and the Earth itself is Plastic Man?
Yeah, it’s pretty awesome.

I don’t know that it’s the best Justice League story, but it’s definitely top notch on every level. I can't say that it's my favorite JLA story of all time, but it's certainly my favorite JLA story at the moment and one of my favorite comics ever.