Plug in the drug machine.

April has written a funny blog entry about vegetarian disbelief, goth mothers, and the looming terror of scrapbooking.
Go read it.

UPDATE!
Chronicles of a Southern Vegetarian : Vol. 2

I've stepped away from it.

So if you look over to your right, you'll see (via the "Right now..") that I finally got to read the new All Star Batman & Robin.

You know, the one that took over a year to come out.

It's as though the longer this book takes to come out the worse it is.

If you haven't read it already, feel free to check out this 5 page preview of one of the worst comics ever.

It seems that however good All Star Superman is, ASB&R has to be the exact same amount in awful to keep the universe balanced.

Remember that this "All Star" line was supposed to be the comics that distilled the characters down to their most recognizable essences. This line is supposed to be the stories you can give to anyone, your mom, your dad, your grandparents, your nephews and nieces, your friends, your friend's little brother, your boy or girlfriend. The stories anyone can pick up and enjoy.

Now, call me crazy, but I don't think a comic that features Wonder Woman calling someone a "sperm bank" (no joke) is something I'd want to share with anyone, let alone people who I want to introduce to comics.

The ISB has a great review focusing on the absurd hilarity of it's awfulness, while Rachelle has a running commentary that softens some of the blow of reading the actual comic.

Is this whole thing some kind of sick joke that Frank Miller's playing on us, or has he honestly gone batshit (ha) insane? I could completely appreciate this if I knew it was intentionally being funny. I would be upset that Miller was hurting the All Star line for a joke, but I could at least feel like it was okay that I was laughing at this comic that Jim Lee and DC are wasting their time on.

If I don't get some answers here, Curt and I have every intention of getting answers in San Diego.

Flying high again!

Two year old chrishaley in standard attire.

This is all real-time.

This is my X-Men : Evolution Cyclops maquette. I've never seen an episode of that (no longer airing) cartoon, but I love Cyclops and I got an insane deal on this, so here it is.
Again, this picture has a few notes should you click upon it.

As I mentioned in the last post, I saw Sloan last night.
It was incredible.
Incredible.
I'll have pictures soon.
Until then, enjoy a new edition of my Top 25 Most Played Songs..

Some definite movement from the last time, but Dethklok and Sloan continue to dominate the charts.
There were a few new challengers this time though.
How much longer can the biggest band in the world and the boys from Halifax maintain their control?

Can we agree on that?

This is my animated Boba Fett maquette. It's basically one of the raddest things ever. This picture has a few notes should you decide to click on it.
I'm slightly obsessed with maquettes and statues as of late. I've got a problem.

Speaking of Sloan (I'm not now, but I was in the last post), I'm going to Nashville to see them tonight!
Whoo!

Things can happen if we stay...

Check out my pictures on Sloan's website.

I knew the answers to both right away.

Would you have sex with a robot?
That's the question Curt and his blog are discussing.
Go enjoy the conversation and see why I'm glad to be associated with Mr. Franklin.
Maybe we'll let you visit our Hobo-Batman butler having mansion someday.

He wants to look cool. I appreciate that.

I've gone lazer-crazy.

2007 Eisner Award Nominee Joel Priddy took me up on the bio writing challenge I issued.. as I hoped he might.
Even better, he wrote it as a haiku.

shooting lasers to
conquer the impossible:
it’s the chris haley.

Is there anything Joel can't do?

The millenial rhythms.

That's about as funny as anything gets. Ever.

So I got an e-mail earlier in the week that let me know that the Streets of Rage comic Curt and I did was enjoyed enough by the respective editors that it is going to be published.
This was very exciting news to the both of us.
Now we are faced with an even more daunting task.
We must write little bios for ourselves to appear along side the bios of the other creative type people in the back of the anthology.
If anyone wants to have a go at writing a humorous but mildly accurate 2 or 3 line bio of me I'd be more than willing to read it, and then use it without giving you any credit for your effort.
Doesn't that sound like a great deal and a lot of fun?
I thought so.

More details on the comic and it's publication as that information becomes available.

Listen, bud.

A great Spider-Man 3 essay/editorial(?) can be found by clicking here.
It's not very long and it's worth reading.

We're gonna get it started.

A quick sketch of some kind of alternate, possibly Legion-involved costume for Superboy I did on a post-it note.

Also, feel free to notice two things.
Item number the one is that April has updated her new blog.
Item the second is that my co-hort (hyphenated?) Curt Franklin has begun a blog as he needed something to link to in an upcoming biography. He's already feeling the pressure of The Curse of the Need for Content so why not drop by and give him a hard time about it.

What?

You didn't know I could do that?

Anyone else see this?

A word on tracing.

I am an absolutely awful inker.
No one is going to try and tell you otherwise, but if they do, they are lying.
I hate it.
I've been working on this one page comic about "Streets of Rage" all week for Lifemeter. I liked my pencils fine, but I feel like the inks I've done for it are just awful and soulless.
Blah.
It's done though.
For better or worse, it's done.
Well, the inking is. I started coloring it, and I'm hating how that's looking as well. Understand, I'm not a negative guy.

I've taken to drawing on CDs. These two feature Sagat of Street Fighter 2 fame and Erik Larsen's Dragon.

I've got the greatest view from here.

April and I made Miis of Clark Kent and Selina Kyle.
The Wii is awesome for allowing us to do this.
Do you have any idea how much fun it is being on a baseball team with Superman?
I've made Bruce Wayne and a Scott Pilgrim as well.
It doesn't get much better.

More Batman Birthday-ness.

I forgot this one.
I drew this on the side of a box full of figures.
I hate moving.

Happy Birthday Batman!

INTO BAT-ACTION!

On this day in 1939, Detective Comics #27 was published and so today we celebrate 68 years of Bat-Mania!


This Batman is on my desk at work.


Here's a little bitty Batman I painted on a little bitty canvas.


Here's a Batman wallpaper I made. Pencils by Ed McGuinness. Inks by Dexter Vines. Colors by me.

Let's do this thing.

I need to play some catch up with things I've intended to talk about, so I may have to do the quick and dirty version of some of these.


If that doesn't make you want to read The Spirit I don't know what will.


A quick little comic I did on a Post-It note about year ago. Click on it why don't you?


Rock 'n Roll Monster! (If you've seen the MST3K episode where they watch Merlin's Shop of Mystical Wonders then you know exactly how that should be read.)


Ah, happier times. Sigh.

This American Life + Chris Ware

Anything's better than nothing.

So, I guess I basically have two things I sincerely like doing.
Cartooning (you can call it "art" if that makes you feel better) and playing music.

I feel like I'm making strides on the cartooning front everyday. Slowly, but surely. I've got ideas and a real desire to make things happen, and if a lot of the comics I'm reading these days are any indication, talent is in a distant third place after those two. I'm aware that that sentence is completely depressing, but I might as well get mine while I can, right?

That leaves us with the band thing.
I'm sure you've all heard me bitch and moan on the internet about how I want to get a band going, but nothing happens.
I just don't want to be in a shitty band, and I think I have to move away from Memphis to do that.
I mean, I feel like there was a point in time when we were the only band worth a damn in this town, and since we've dissolved.. not much has changed.
I'm sure there are bands playing out around town now that I haven't heard, so until I do, you guys are excluded from my "shitty bands" list, but I feel like I already know the only people who're worth getting involved with, and it doesn't look like I'm ever going to be able to do anything with them.
Isn't there anyone else in this town that likes Electric Six and Superdrag? Sloan and Judas Priest? OK Go and Sweet? Andrew WK and Van Halen?
Is there nary a soul who wants to play music that makes people feel good and put their fists in the air?
I mean, all I wanna do is rock.
Am I really so alone in that desire?

So, yeah, I guess I'll see.