Mr. Anthrope

All Grown Up

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New Watchmen Trailer

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New trailer, lots of Rorschach. I am so impatient for March!

More Watchmen Footage

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I actually recorded the Scream Awards on Spike just so I could see this footage and it didn't disappoint. There wasn't too much new material in it, but even a little is a wonderful present.

Notice that My Chemical Romance frontman/Umbrella Academy creator Gerard Way introduces everyone while standing in front of the frakin' Owl Ship!!!

I'm going to get irrationally exuberent on your ass!

Chris Sims: Comics Prescriptivist.

P. 79 - Manhunter #35: Hang on for a second while I grab the Nerd Hat… Ah, there we go. Okay, so the solicitation for this issue says that “Kate uses the Fed’s own weapons against them.” Now, do they mean that she uses the Feds’ own weapons against them, or is Manhunter going to start fighting crime by adjusting interest rates? Will she finally be ending the Motley Fool’s reign of terror?

Either you know why this is the funniest grammar joke of the day or you don't.

Umbrella Academy review

I know, I know. It looks like I'm not writing much 'cause I'm not blogging much. But I'm writing a lot, I swear.

Like my new review of Gerard Way's Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite at Pop Critics.

This is all a long-winded way of saying, there are a lot of very bad comics out there and celebrity “writers” are some of the worst offenders.

So when it was first announced that My Chemical Romance frontman Gerard Way was coming out with a book of his own, it was ignored by the comics cognoscenti. Just another rock star (literally) wanking off (not literally). It would get published, his screaming fans would buy it, and it would get tossed in the bin a few days later to be forgotten forever.

Follow the link to read the rest.

Form of...crap

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I went looking for a Wonder Twins video. Boy did I find one. Please note the great Ted Knight impression of the narrator, too. Whomever that is really nailed the voice.

Quis vestiet ipsos custodes?

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That's right bitches, a Latin joke.

Who clothes the watchers?

via Zack himself.

She must give a mighty good blowjob

So sad. Remember just two days ago I was cautiously optimistic about The Spirit? Well, all optimism is now out the window. I might see it on DVD, but I'm *certainly* not going to pay good money to see it in a theater. All I had to do was check the cast list, but it honestly never occurred to me that anyone would be so stupid as to cast this poorly again.

Meet your Sand Seref.

The Spirit Teaser

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Hard to tell much from this teaser, especially as I was ready to see B&W with only the odd saturated color. That look served Frank Miller well in Sin City (both on film and in his original sequential), and it's certainly a valid choice for Eisner's Spirit.

I'm reserving judgment until I see more. This isn't as high on my must-see list for next year as Watchmen, but I'm hoping for it to be a winner.

Rachel McAdams in Purple

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One of my favorite possessions (which is not currently in my possession, but my friend's as he keeps forgetting to bring them when we get together) is the original run of Black Orchid. I haven't read it in almost twenty years (though figured I would when I got it back before reshelving it) but still remember Dave McKean's stunning artwork, the insane, foot long ears he put on Bats' cowl, and this one scene, early on with a bomb...

I won't spoil it. It was memorable.

Anyway, it appears that one of my favorite imports from the Great White North also has a soft spot for Black Orchid. Rachel McAdams told MTV that she'd like to play the titular heroine.

"I just read this book Black Orchid and it’s a really interesting character," the actress said. "She’s a superhero that’s a flower. I don’t know if that would work or the audiences would be interested in that, but she was kind of cool."

Not just a flower, but a plant/human hybrid able to alter her appearance and voice, regenerate — even fly. And one that, although relatively unheard of, comes with a pretty recognizable comic pedigree, McAdams reminded.

"I like all the Neil Gaiman stuff. It’s great," McAdams said of the comics god who reinvented the character with a limited series run in 1988. "I think it’s really visually so dynamic and would work really well."

Maybe instead of wasting money on another shitty Superman movie (Brandon Routh? Really?) or cobbling together a miscast, garbage Justice League movie in a frantic reaction to Marvel's upcoming Avengers flick, Time-Warner should do something good.

via Gaiman himself

Watchmen Pics!

I can't believe Watchmen is a year away! Then again, after 20+ years of waiting, I can't believe it's only a year away!

Always a fan as well as a director, Zack Snyder's got a new post up at the official production blog. Photos of most of the principals in costume. I had a little nerdgasm from the pic of Rorschach before. Imagine how I reacted when I saw this set of five! And let me tell you, as every prior production shot has shown, the set designers have nailed the universe. Archie looks wicked cool behind Nite Owl.

But don't take my word for it. Click through.

As much as I'm looking forward to The Dark Knight and Iron Man this year, that pales in comparison to the tantric delight I'm building up for Watchmen.

Depression, Schizophrenia, Lasagna

From John Hodgman, who had to admit he reads Andrew Sullivan...

garfield minus garfield.

More here.

Repo Returns!

Back in '94-'95, Alex Cox wrote a screenplay for a sequel to Repo Man. Thanks to the youth culture in Hollywood, nothing ever came of it:

In '94-'95, I wrote it as a film script and gave it to Peter McCarthy, who was one of the original producers of Repo Man. And he showed it to Jonathan Wacks, who was the other original producer, and they said, ''Let's take it to [ex-Monkee and Repo Man executive producer] Michael Nesmith and have him present it to Universal officially.'' We all came down for the meeting at Universal, and the executive that we had been delegated to meet was, like, 21 years old and had never seen the original Repo Man. [Laughs] And so it was an absurd meeting of these four old men and this sprightly individual who just didn't know what we were doing in his office.

But now, we're going to get to see Waldo's Hawaiian Holiday in some of its splendid glory. At least we'll get to read it as a comic with some fantastic looking art from Chris Bones.

I have to admit, I've not seen Repo Man in ten or fifteen years, so I'll have to toss it at the top of my Netflix queue, but man this is sweet.

Washington was built on swampland

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You know what I love? YouTube. Also? Apparently Al Gore was tight with David Ben-Gurion.

Wolverines!!!

Man, they grow 'em tough in Texas. Even the ballet dancers are tough.

This is teh awesome. A comic 'bout Patrick Swayze, via Occasional Superheroine.

Hey Runt! I see you walking down the street!

Excuse me while I wipe the drool from my keyboard. Maybe it can't be done as a film (with the rumored simultaneously released DVDs of "Black Freighter", Hollis Mason pimping "Under the Hood", and whatever else Zack Snyder's got planned.) Maybe it is too dense and rich to be anything less than a mini-series. Still? Looking at these shots of the sets? Zack's going to give it a goddamn good try.

Watchmen Extras?

This sounds like great Watchmen news, except Zack Snyder would either have to scab out the work, or perpetuate the rift between screenwriters of animated fare and non-animated fare.

Let's hope an agreement can be made soon so this can all come to pass...the right way.

Better than Tetris

Heh. Usually, xkcd doesn't do much for me...this one made me smile.

You saw a revolution and a war? Wow, that's wild.

Marjane Satrapi's film of her graphic novel Persepolis has garnered all kinds of awards. The trailer's available on Yahoo, here and it looks awesome.

I'm a little embarrassed I've not read the novels, so I'll be picking those up in short order. Review forthcoming.

For now, check out the trailer, check out the site, and be as excited as I am (and if you're lucky enough to be in LA or NY, happy that you can see this when it opens on December 25 for Oscar consideration.)