Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Snap Judgements: Kick Ass #4, Runaways #1, Teen Titans: Year One #6, and More

Short comic reviews based on initial, lizard-brain opinions. Arranged from BEST to WORST. There is a potential spoiler within for Teen Titans, but I can't imagine you care.

Teen Titans: Year One #6 gets an A from AHR

This book is beautiful. Moments of terror, sadness, and victory. And still good for all ages. Also includes my favorite absurd bat-quote ever, "HRM. DAMN IMs". If only this wasn't the last issue.


Blue Beetle #30 gets an A from AHR

Oh, I was a fool to drop this book when John Rogers left...this issue is excellent. Funny, uniquely latino-minded, exciting, everything that made this series great in the first place. Lots of nerd jokes too, FTW.

Runaways #1 gets an A- from AHR

I know, I'm dumb, I didn't read this when Joss Whedon was writing it, but I'm reading it now and it's awesome! I'm a big fan of Humberto Ramos's super-cartoon anime style, though I wish the colors in this book were a little less day-glo. Terry Moore does an excellent job at making the heroes sound just smart and spontaionous enough to be believable kids, and you can tell you're in the hands of a pro for whom story and character comes miles ahead of one-liners and trying to be cool.

Kick Ass #4 gets a C from AHR

I only enjoy reading about the main character in this book when he's getting hurt terribly, and there's not much of that since #1. But there is some satisfyingly unflinching gore in this issue, and it's nice to see a "creepy little girl" character who can actually string a sentence together, as opposed to Cassandra Cain, the Female of the Species, The Little Sisters, Layla Miller, and the villain in every Japanese horror movie.

Teen Titans #62 gets a D from AHR

Jesus Christ, DC, we get it! You're not afraid to gruesomely murder lovable silver age characters who never hurt anyone. Enough. Enough.

Monday, August 25, 2008

(Mini) Panel Discussion: Scans from Air, Tales to Thrizzle

Every week we at Geekanerd rip panels from our comics and put them on display here, recognizing the best, worst, and weirdest moments of the week. Beware some major SPOILERS.

Hey, some weeks the books we buy have interesting panels and some weeks they don't. Got something to say about a panel from one of your books? Send it to us!

Genre Bending - Air #1
This book read like soap opera/action thriller hybrid the whole way through, but no moment illustrates this weird mix quite as well as this one: Our heroine learns the true name of the tall dark stranger, kisses him, mumbles out a corny simile... and jumps out of a plane.

Just a Good Laugh - Tales to Thrizzle #4
You may need to click to read this li'l strip.

Olympic Highlights...Matrix Style

Okay, so this is actually kind of an old video, and was made long before the Beijing Olympics. But I never had a good excuse to post it here, and the end of The Biggest Olympics Ever is probably the best reason I'll ever have.



You can actually feel your brain struggle to keep up with your perceptions as you watch it. It's not an unpleasant feeling.

What really blows my mind is that if you showed this video to someone twenty years ago, they would have no idea what they were watching. The "Bullet-Time" 360 effect is unique to contemporary filmmaking, and whether we realize it or not we're all fluent in a kind of film language that would be totally inaccessible to people just a few decades ago.

This skit is from semi-annual Japanese program called Kasou Taishou . You can also watch version of this video where the puppeteers are more obvious.

Friday, August 22, 2008

Snap Judgements: Batman and the Outsiders #10, Hack/Slash #15, and Birds of Prey #121

Short comic reviews based on initial, lizard-brain opinions. Arranged from BEST to WORST.

There are very minor SPOILERS herein.

Hack/Slash #15 gets an A from AHR
Hey did you guys know there's this movie called "Re-Animator" by some old guy named HP Lovecraft and it has ZOMBIES in it? This issue of Hack/Slash is a cross-over with that, and even if you're like me and have no Cult Horror credits in your nerd account, this issue is still awesome.

Instead of being a one-off shlockfest as per your usual crossover, this ish has tons of tantalizing reveals about Cassie's past, and weaves the Re-Animator stuff in seamlessly (hopefully fans of the movie will feel the same way). Even though this seems to be the beginning of the end of Hack/Slash's over-arching storyline, I'd recommend that even n00bs to pick it up; you'll miss the "fan"-tastic continuity details (sorry), but it gives you a great overview of the plot and a good cliffhanger, and if you like it you can go back and read the whole thing. Good plan. Break!

Two much shorter reviews for DC books after the jump...


Birds of Prey #121 gets an B from AHR

I admit, I haven't read this series since Gail Simone left, I only read this because Joker was on the cover shooting someone in the head. And you know, the inside didn't really disappoint. There's some bad dialogue, sure, but there's also a line about how the Joker did whippets with Scarecrow's fear gas, which is both hilarious and a fun reference to a comic from years ago. Not sure what the rest of the plot in this issue means, but I got my money's worth.


Batman and the Outsiders #10 gets an D from AHR


I read this on Wednesday and now on Thursday night, I have almost no memory of it. I remember being passively interested when I was reading it, and I remember that Cass Cain gets to do something other than be hated by everyone, but other than that, literally forgettable. And I haven't even been drinking.

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

How To Twitter Your Way Through Alien and Zombie Invasions

You may have seen the Twitter Timeline During Zombie Attack mock-up that was a big smash on Digg about a month ago...by the time I saw it, it was too late to post. But I bookmarked the excellent blog from whence it came, Kensington Victoria, and what do you know, blogger extraordinare Andrew posted a sequel.

I present an excerpt from Twitter Timeline During Alien Invasion. Click for the full version!


And in case you missed it, here's a sample from the equally awesome (and slightly scary) Zombie edition.


Love these. On the comment thread at KV, I suggested future installments might include The Rapture and a Day After Tomorrow type catastrophe. Anyone else have ideas of sci-fi/horror global crisises that Twitizens could document?

Bonus: My other favorite piece of Twitter humor (also the episode of Rocketboom that made me fall for Joanne Colan, after the jump...


Favorite moment at 2:53. I love me some desperation.

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Comics So Good They Should Not Be Free II: Freakangels

I repeatedly confuse Garth Ennis and Warren Ellis. I have this problem with alliterative names that have the same number of letters and it's caused a lot of problems...well I won't bore you.

The point is, my problem is finally solved, because Warren Ellis is currently writing something SO GOOD it would be a crime to forget whom to attribute it to. I'm talking about Freakangels, which has been released in free weekly online installments since last February.

The panels above and below demonstrate how amazingly intricate and gorgeous Paul Duffield's artwork is, but what I can't capture in a panel is how great the characters are. The first story arc was recently completed (due in trade paperback this November) and is a great example of a "bringing the team together" opener. Personalities and relationships are revealed one by one, until you find yourself immersed in a patchwork of indelible characters (my favorite is Sirkka, a bisexual hedonist with a stately attitude). Then of course then it's time for a crisis and you see how your new pals deal under the gun.

I haven't read the whole thing again in one sitting yet, but in my comic experience what's good over several months is even better with instant gratification. Enjoy!

NBC's Big Deal Sci-Fi Web Series Is Actually Pretty Good

The square media is finally starting to respond to the fact that their days are numbered, and those numbers are ONE and ZERO. Binary. I'm talking about original web content, and in the world of webshows there's no bigger story right now than NBC's newest bid to join the new century, a 50-episode web series starring Rosario Dawson called Gemini Division.

The series premiered on Monday, and my review is currently up on Tilzy.TV, a news and reviews hub for web shows. Though I went in fully prepared to write a hilariously cruel review (the trailer does the show no favors), it's actually an enjoyable piece of work. I guess RENT and Josie & The Pussycats weren't enough to show me the full range of Rosie D's charm, cause she's kind of adorable in this. But maybe you already knew that.

Monday, August 18, 2008

Oh Hell Yes: Mice With Swords With 20-Sided Dice

Mouse Guard scribe David Petersen was at GenCon this weekend, and he's posted this brilliant poster for the upcoming RPG on his blog...

I just wish Gary Gygax had lived to see this. Kenzie stabbing through a D20 is one of the nerdiest images I've ever seen, and it's my new desktop. This game was supposed to come out "Summer 2008", but Mouse Guard time always seems to move verrrry slowly, why, because quality takes time.

Historical Context: I'm particularly excited about this game because the first RPG I ever played was a homemade campaign based on the Brian Jacque's Redwall series. I loved those books all through grade school, and the chance to roleplay a mouse with sword still holds a great deal of allure. Although if I remember correctly, the last time I did it ended with our entire party being killed by a badger in the throes of Bloodwrath, who may or may not have actually been a member of said party. These things happen.

Panel Discussion: Scans From Final Crisis: Revelations #1, The Walking Dead #51, Simon Dark #11, and More

Every week we at Geekanerd rip panels from our comics and put them on display here, recognizing the best, worst, and weirdest moments of the week. Beware some major SPOILERS.

Least Subtle Public Service Announcement - Walking Dead #51
Reading? More fun than video games? Simmer down kid, your dad's already going crazy, we don't need you losing your head too. But seriously, there's nothing wrong with a little book-boosting, though the precocious execution here is a little Family Circus. I prefer a more direct approach.

Movie references, Doctor Light gets what's coming to him (kind of), and social justice, after the jump...

Movie Moment - Simon Dark #11
I've been waiting for the mysteries of Simon Dark's past to be revealed for a year now, I was a little disappointed when it was all unloaded in one big 5-page scene by the freaking Architect.

Most Disappointing Death - Doctor Light, Final Crisis Revelations #1
I have no problem with this death in of itself; turning someone into a giant candle and using their head as a wick is classic Spectre. But it's sadly literal; I get it, Doctor Light, Candle, Incandescence, okay. But Doctor Light is (in DC's Infinite Wisdom) a serial rapist. I'm not saying I wanted to see Doctor Light being raped to death. I'm just saying, if you introduce rape as a fundamental aspect of a character (it comes up several times in this issue alone), wouldn't something concerning rape be a more appropriate demise? This couldn't be a double standard where rape and gender are concerned, could it?

Credibility Issue - Welcome to Hoxford #1
I'm not convinced this guy would actually be committed to an institution. First of all, the insanity defense is used way, way less than you'd think from watching courtroom drama. I guess on The Wire rich drug dealers can get out of prison with their fancy lawyers, but this guy seems to have actually been convicted of killing cops. His status as a young black male makes me think most states would be less inclined to institutionalize him and more willing to have him swiftly fitted for a drip feed of death.

Wow, this was the most depressing Panel Discussion ever! Thanks for reading!

Sunday, August 17, 2008

Michael Phelps As Aquaman


He's the fastest swimmer alive, he beat Mark Spitz' number-of-gold-medals-in-one-Olympics record by winning his EIGHTH last night, he's double jointed (hey ladies!) so he can flip around like some sort of marine animal...if he can just get the fish-sonar working, the world may just have their first real life superhero.

Click for hi-res.

Saturday, August 16, 2008

Geekanerd Spotter: Stormtroopers Take Keyspan Park

Hey did you see The Clone Wars when it opened yesterday? I didn't, making it the first Star Wars movie I haven't seen on opening day since I was born. Ooh, it just looks so bad. But I can't help feeling like I skipped an old friend's birthday party, even if that friend has turned into an infantile cash-monger. Sad.

But on a lighter note, yesterday at the Brooklyn Cyclones game at Keyspan Park, a troupe of Stormtroopers showed up to pass out posters. I love this picture, because the guy on the left looks very self-conscious about being photographed in a nerdy context, the girl in the middle is being a good sport, and the girl on the right is somehow pulling off a "Yeah, I'm holding a Clone Wars mini-poster, you jealous?" look.
Foaming Geek Analysis Moment: I do have to question exactly what sort of troopers these are supposed to be. Given that they're promoting Clone Wars, you'd think they're supposed to be Clone Troopers from the era between Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. The red guy is clearly a Clone Captain in Phase II armor, you can see the model here. So that checks out. But those other guys are just classic Stormtroopers, who weren't around until after (or at least the very end of) Revenge of the Sith. C'mon Lucasfilm, you couldn't spring for a few more Clone Trooper uniforms, you have to pull those old Halloween costumes out of storage? It never ends.

Thanks to loyal Gnerd reader Lena for sending these pictures in; here's her sister Alison in a classic photo op post with a trooper.

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Snap Judgments: Reviews for Young Liars, Captain Britain and MI13, Secret Invasion and More

Short comic reviews based on initial, lizard-brain opinions. Arranged from BEST to WORST.

There are probably some minor SPOILERS herein.

Captain Britain and MI13 #4
gets an A from Albo
My good friend Hunter told me last week that Captain Britain and MI13 was the best comic Marvel was currently publishing. Never one to turn down a strongly-worded recommendation, I bought all four issues of the series today and that old sumbitch might be right. It may just be because I'm getting so sick of Bendis' Secret Invasion books, and yet this series uses the mega event as its jumping off point and somehow manages to stay grounded enough to get some good character work done. This four issue intro just wrapped up, I can't wait to see where the book takes us in a post-Skrull universe (oh, did I mention? The British have already dealt with their Skrull invasion.)

Reviews for Young Liars #6, Welcome to Hoxford #1, Universal War One Book 2 and Secret Invasion #5 after the jump.

Young Liars #6 gets an A from Albo
Ah, David Lapham, how did I ever doubt you? Yeah, many of the issues of this series have been miserable reads, but you've really picked it up here. This issue and the last one are filled with some incredibly shocking scenes. In a storytelling medium where the biggest threat (*cough*World War Hulk*cough*Secret Invasion*cough*) can be handled with a fistfight and zero serious consequences, it's a real treat seeing main characters go through severe, non-reversible, life-changing shit. Like, uh... Beheading. Last issue was castration. Where can they go from here?

Welcome to Hoxford #1 gets a B from Albo
I didn't get too much out of this issue. It's certainly not bad, the art is suitably creepy for a Ben Templesmith horror book and the writing is solid, I think I just have to see where it's going to really decide if I like the world the book is set in. So I guess what I'm saying is, stay tuned. But hey, if you like dark stories about prisoners getting (SPOILER) eaten alive, jump right in!

Universal War One Book 2 gets a C from Albo
I'm probably being a bit too harsh on this one. As far as spacey sci-fi comics go, it's better than most. There's even something exotic about the whole package because it's a French import. But really, despite the good art and the above average panel to panel writing, the pacing of the whole shebang is really screwy. Add to that the fact that after two looong issues I'm still not sure what I'm really supposed to be caring about and you've got yourself a C book in Albo's... book. Though a planet getting cut in half is admittedly pretty darn cool.

Secret Invasion #5 gets a D from Albo
Every time I attend or watch online a Marvel panel at a comic convention, someone inevitably gets on the mic and asks the question: "Why do you guys keep doing these big events that nobody really likes?" And Marvel's answer is always the same: "You keep buying them." It's a very honest answer, but it's also kind of a slap in the face. We buy them because they've told us the event is the most important thing going on in the universe and we're afraid that if we don't follow the books we'll be out of the loop. I haven't liked Secret Invasion since issue one, but here I am telling you what I think about the latest issue I bought. But I swear to you, right here and now, I will not buy another issue of this series. Why? Because nothing happens. Nothing. We're still where we were at the end of issue one. The characters are so secondary to the whole thing that they might as well be G.I Joes or the Scooby Doo crew and it wouldn't affect the story. Full disclosure, I'm still going to read these things in the store. But I swear I will not contribute to "you keep buying them" any more.

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Boba Fett Just Wants To Dance


Watching a fully-articulated Boba Fett do the Flashdance dance is the most fun I've had all week. Those Robot Chicken jokers could learn a little something about stop motion from this Patrick Boivin fellow. Now if we could just throw a Han in there and make them do the Dirty Dancing Time of My Life dance...

Via /Film.

Monday, August 11, 2008

Real Homemade Sentry Gun!


Here's something for you Portal/Team Fortress fans (or fans of any fps set in any time period post 1998 for that matter). Some geeks with an affinity for motion sensors and paintballs built an actual auto-targeting sentry gun! No remote controls or anything (just a cumbersome laptop parked next to it) Prepare to be amazed as some poor kid in a bmx helmet gets wailed on by an automatic paintball gun with nothing to lose!

Via Kotaku, The Sentry Project

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Panel Discussion: Scans From Spider-Man Summer Special, Buffy Season Eight #17, Special Forces #3, and More

Worst Battle Cry - Teen Titans #61
Truly putting the "kid" in Kid Devil, looks like someone is still hanging on to their third grade zingers.

Inappropriate baby imagery, inappropriate places to have sex, and inappropriate uses of the English language, after the jump...

Supervillainscuties - King Size Spider-Man Summer Special

Chris Giarrusso's brain-hungry symbiote and Colleen Coover's squat little Modok make for some adorable little miscreants.
But what's up with the Spectacular Spider-Chub?

How They Like It - Catwoman #81
Catwoman and Batman have sex while falling off a building.

Is She or Isn't She? - King Size Spider-Man Summer Special
Hmm, that would explain her obsession with Thor--the girliest hero in all of comics. I also submit into evidence the fact that this story was drawn by Colleen Coover, the writer/artist responsible for the lesbian porno comic Small Favors. Coincidence? Perhaps.

Class Act - Blue Beetle, Teen Titans #61
Blue Beetle is such an enjoyable character to read, you have to wonder why more teen super heroes aren't written beyond petulant, angsty stereotypes. Here he tries to make piece with Kid Devil after they find their tracking the same vllian...
And though this next panel may seem like a dick move out of context, I feel that this is a honest attempt to respectfully keep KD in the loop, and to downplay the awkwardness of the situation by injecting a little humor. Tactful texts are very important in this day and age...

Stay classy, Double B.

Spider-Man is Creepy - King Size Spider-Man Summer Special
Keeping an eye on the missus? Trying to stare down her blouse? Any way you cut it, this is a little weird.

Irony Alert - Buffy The Vampire Slayer Season Eight #17

Buffy has done more than her share of twisting the english language into a near unrecognizable web of adjective-nouns and superfluous suffixes, and only a thousand years in the future does Buff realize what her valley-speak hath wrought.

Woah, Overreact Much? - NYX: No Way Home #1
What? There's nothing I understand about this interaction. Her art? What the hell? Dumpster diving? And that face! She's really really pissed about this. I just don't get it.

Celebrity Casting Corner - Army @ Love: The Art of War #1
Paris Hilton makes an appearance here as Sylvia Stein, a hot actress who just happens to spend much of the issue as a giant ape that blesses a fanboy soldier with some rough monkey sex. Oh, that sounds like something you'd like to see?

Kyle Baker Goes Too Far
- Special Forces #3

Going...
Goooiiiinnnggg...
Gone.

Writer's Worst Nightmare - Army @ Love: The Art of War #1
This issue opens up with writer Rick Veitch getting waterboarded for the suspicious web research he did when writing the first series. I'm sure this scenario has played itself out in the heads of anybody who has ever Googled something like "how to build a nuclear bomb" for the sake of some creative work. Or published the words on their public blog. Be right back, someone's at the door.

Friday, August 08, 2008

Snap Judgments: Reviews for Buffy, Detective Comics, NYX and More

Short comic reviews based on initial, lizard-brain opinions. Arranged from BEST to WORST.

There are probably some minor SPOILERS herein.

King-Size Spider-Man Summer Special gets an A from Albo
I used to LOVE these 80-page Summer specials when I was a kid. Turns out I still do! Kinda. What we have here is a really great Spidey-less story about a bunch of Marvel Girls facing the Enchantress, a really awful Spidey/Falcon team up story where the the latter gives the former a bunch of unwarranted race relation scoldings, and a sub par story of mini-Spidey and mini-Venom competing for a paper route. Still worth it for that first one by Paul Tobin with really cute, clean art by Colleen Coover.

Reviews for Detective Comics #847, Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 #17, Special Forces #3, NYX: No Way Home #1, and Army @ Love: The Art of War #1 after the jump!

Detective Comics #847 gets an A- from AHR
I get it now! "Hush" fits into the cannon of Batman villains because his evil pathology is a Norman Batesesque mama's boy gone homicidal trip. And "Hush" is probably a hush-little-baby thing. I wonder if any of this was planned ahead of time or if Paul Dini in his wisdom just filled in the backstory to give this silly "event" character some substance. Either way, it's fun to see the pieces come together, and Dustin Nyguin's art shows no signs of becoming any less fun and surprising.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 #17 gets a B from AHR
Did you enjoy the way the future punks spoke in The Dark Knight Returns? I didn't. Joss's future-speak in this arc of Buffy sounds even more tinny and labored than Miller's, but it does at least give rise to one really good gag in which Buffy bemoans how this perversion of the English language may be partly due to her own Whedonesque speaking patterns. I'm still not quite sold on the Fray arc, but the heavily foreshadowed cliffhanger of this issue guarantees my continued readership.

Special Forces #3 gets a B from Albo
This book is astonishingly amateur. It's really quite sloppy, but in a way that feels more like uncapped creativity than poor storytelling. Kyle Baker is constantly ALMOST going too far, and while the series hasn't quite lived up to the amazing first issue, it's still chock full of absurd, thought-provoking stuff. Bonus "reality" section in the back brings real world context to the issues Baker is dealing with in the book--including photos of real mutant babies with ironic word balloons. Like I said, this guy really pushes the boundaries of good taste.

NYX: No Way Home #1 gets a C from Albo
This first issue looks nice, but doesn't do much to get me interested in the characters. 'Nuff said?

Army @ Love: The Art of War gets a D from Albo
Very unfriendly to the new reader (me). If you want to see lots of cartoon boobs, this book is for you. If you want a clear story or a funny joke or some good drama leave this one on the shelf.

Wednesday, August 06, 2008

Belated San Diego Comic Con Pics!

Ok, so I'm a terrible guerrilla e-journalist. I know this damn thing happened over a week ago, but I accidentally shipped the camera these photos lived in back to NYC before uploading them. Pretty stupid. Anyhow, better late than never.

Anywho, Comic Con. Pretty awesome. Though word to the wise: plan ahead. We managed to score tickets at the last possible moment and ending up going down for Saturday evening and Sunday. By that point, pretty much all of the cool exciting stuff had already been announced and we missed a ton of great panels. The only panel we got to was actually one of the very last panels of the whole damn thing-but I'll get to that later...

Above is the fabled Owl Ship from The Watchmen. Or is it Owl Pod? Whatever the kids are calling it these days, its pretty damn cool... even the innards are all aglow with science. Probably all for show-but there's no doubt in my mind that any one of those buttons could have killed hundreds.

Follow the jump for more pics!

Here's a Cylon and the bizarre SciFi booth. I thought at first it was supposed to be like the interior of a Cylon Basestar or something... nope. Just a color changing globular thing. Also, SciFi had very little to offer Battlestar Galactica wise... (that awesome Cylon was from another exhibitor) so I wasn't too interested in staying too long to figure out just what that thing was supposed to be.

Obviously there was tons of Star Wars junk. Tons. Especially given the upcoming release of Clone Wars. But you know what, it's Comic Con-I imagine you'd be hard pressed to find a year where there wasn't tons of star wars shit. Anyway, here are some cool jedi posing it up for some girl with a pink iPhone. Also, there was a startling surplus of Boba Fetts roaming the floor-I heard a rumor they were security-but I'm not sure how believable that is... I just think there was a sale somewhere on Boba Fett helmets. Though cool-I'd prefer the menacing uniformity of stormtrooper security anyway-Fett loses something when there are hundreds of him. Oh, and here's a gross, to-scale Jabba... for the record, his lips weren't that bright-he was just too accurately portrayed and the gross slime on his lips caught my flash and glowed a bit.


Here's the first Iron Man suit from the movie. Pretty impressive up close.


Pretty awesome Destro and Cobra Commander in front of some sort of evil Cobra drilling ship-you just know a bunch of Cobra grunts died in the testing phase of that death trap.

Lego Batman! I'll take this opportunity to talk about the one panel we did get to. It featured Grant Morrison and Deepak Chopra discussing the "soul of the superhero" and "modern mythology." Pretty heady stuff-but very fascinating. Lots of meanderings on human potential and how science fiction can get us there... and Grant had a pretty cool bit on the need for a new kind of storytelling. In response to a question on Orwell's 1984, he talked about how that kind of bleak distopian future-somewhat a standard convention in current comics-was originally meant to serve as a sort of warning of "what could be." However, he argued, its becoming more like a self fulfilling prophecy. Therefore he called for artists to tell a new kind of story-one that focuses on human potential and all that. Not sure how creepy labcoat joker fits into his theory though...

And finally-some cool costumes. I learned that apparently you can make ANYthing out of duct tape. I was shocked at how many costumes were made entirely out of duct tape-even skirts and capes... which I think are probably much easier to manage as, you know, actual fabrics. I didn't take too many pics of awesome costumes though-there were almost too many that I was overwhelmed and could never get my camera out in time. But I couldn't resist taking a shot with this awesome Bender. Unfortunately the poor guy had been terrorized by some sticker weilding hooligans the day before so he asked me do a sticker sweep on his back-he was clean! Also, side note: I thought I was all cool wearing that Galactus tshirt from R. Stevens... apparently so did 12% of the people at comic con... and it didn't help that he was there selling the damn things. Curse our free market!


And to end it, this was by far the coolest costume I saw there. It's completely homemade and to startling detail. It comes with an articulated tail made out of what appeared to be a bicycle tire. This geek really went all out. Kudos to you sir (or madam... it's hard to tell under all that plastic, rubber, and duct tape).

So I got there a bit too late for some serious in depth coverage-but hopefully this satisfies some of your Comic Con lust. There's always next year.

Sunday, August 03, 2008

Doc Hammer And I Are Best Friends

Seriously. Jamie, Doc and I laughed, cried, and shared our most intimate secrets together during a two-hour plus conversation late Friday night. What started with a tactically loud "There's no way that's DOC HAMMER!" ended with the bonds of friendship drawn tight 'round us all. Ok, I'm exaggerating. A little. The next morning Doc spotted Jamie on a workbreak outside the Apple store, and told him that after we left he was followed by a drunk fan, whom he chatted with until the fan was hit by a car. Doc, feeling somewhat responsible for the victim, began tending to him as best he could when the driver of the car (also apparently drunk) got out and said "Hey, you're Doc Hammer from Venture Bros!" Now when you're in a city of millions and a fan of yours gets hit by a car driven by another fan of yours... You must feel like the most famous man alive. Among Friday night drunks, at least.

Jamie's sneakers vs. Doc Hammer's kicks after the jump...

Check out our previous Venture Bros coverage...