What are they thinking?

A couple of years ago, when Marvel Comics’ fictional character, Captain America (Steve Rogers) was killed during a year-long storyline entitled Civil War, virtually every news media outlet on the planet carried the story (completely ignoring the fact that a) he was a fiction character, b) he was a corporate icon and without “Captain America” there could be no Cap tie-ins, and c) HE IS A FICTIONAL CHARACTER!)

Well, as those of us who are smarter than the rest of you knew better, sure enough, he got better, and Steve Rogers returned to the land of the living just a couple of years later. Even though he didn't immediately take back the uniform of Cap (now inhabited by Bucky Barnes, his WW sidekick (who had also returned from the dead), he became Super Soldier, and took over the helm of the international spy organization, SHIELD from Nick Fury (who was also dead and now alive again (starting to sense a theme here?).





Yet, even that moratorium on him inhabiting the role of Cap America was was short-lived as word has just come down that Steve will once again pick up his shield and become Captain America (in fact, just prior to the release of the Captain America movie — anyone want to take bets on when the “now dead” Johnny Storm (the Fantastic Four’s Human Torch) will return from the dead? When did you say that the FF film reboot is going to happen?).

Yes, yes, I realize that all of this is old news, but it is relevant only in the following light. In the recently-released Action Comics #900, Superman renounced his American Citizenship. Yep, you read that right, declaring himself to be a citizen of the universe (sort of like he did in Superman IV: The Quest for Peace back in 1987!), he rejected his American citizenship. Guess what the right-wing, conservative Republican-leaning Fox and other media did with this...Yes again, they went right ‘round the twist.

Once again because I'm smarter than you I know better, I feel it necessary to point out a few things. 1) Henry Cavill, the actor picked to portray Superman in the next film is, well, British, 2) Joe Shuster (co-creator of Superman) was Canadian , 3) Kal-El (Superman) isn't from Earth, he's an alien, born on the planet Krypton, and 4) HE’S A FICTIONAL CHARACTER!!! You effin morons!

Oh yeah, back to Cap for a minute. The week he died, and everyone was yapping about his death, and what it all meant, eight (real life) U.S. servicemen died In Iraq & Afghanistan, and yet, no one mentioned them.

OK, having said all of that, I’m going back to drinking heavy and reading my comics.

Hero Hunt

Well, I got totally lucky, I found five of the remaining six Marvel Hero toys from McDonald’s this afternoon! (Hey, I’m a geek, for me, this IS getting lucky!) So here you go!

Now all I need is The Hulk, and I’ll have the whole set.

Funnybooks stuff I’ve recently acquired

OK, OK, I know that I’ve been a little lax about posting here, my “excuse” is that I’ve been a tad busy (sorry that I have an actual meatspace live, but that’s the way it goes sometimes droogs). Anyways, I’ve recently acquired some kinda cool funnybook-related stuff. First up is this nifty set of Spidey “Tupperware” that I scored at a local “junk” shop.

Then, as it turns out, Marvel heroes have come to McDonald’s! Yep, it looks like for the next several weeks we will be treated to a passel of Marvel Superheroes. First up are Wolverine and my pal Spidey, who will be followed by (not necessarily in this order) Silver Surfer, Human Torch, Iron Man, Thing, Captain America Hulk. Personally, I can’t wait for the Thor movie, Cap movie and Avenger movie sets (which should be out in 2011, 2012, & 2013 respectively).

In the mean time here are some Images from the current set:

Lastly, I managed to acquire yet another Iron Man Dr. Pepper can (from the movie tie-in set) that is different from the one that I already have. How cool is that?

OK, now to get back to some serious stuff (like looking for the rest of the Marvel Heroes/Mcd fast food toys!

A Pair of Heroes

Spider-Man and the Human Torch, a pair of teens from the dawn of the Silver Age of Marvel Comics. They have been rivals, they have been friends. Last year, Dan Slott wrote a five-issue limited series that tracked these two teens across the time of their lives.

For me, it was one of the best Spidey limited series that I had read in recent days. So it was a real pleasure for me to be asked to write the cover copy to the hard cover bound volume of those comics.



So you can imagine my surprise when I received this very book as a wedding anniversary present from my wife this past week when we celebrated our 21st anniversary.

How cool is that?

And the Human Torch wraps it up!

OK, so I’ve been telling you folks that I’ve been going to my local movie theater to watch films (D'oh) and while there I’ve been tapping this “gumball” machine that has Marvel character toys in it. Well, tonight when I went to see both Public Enemies and G.I. Joe, and I managed to score the final figure in the first (?) set of toys, none other than the Human Torch himself.

One of my local comic shops has another gumball machine with a second set of Marvel characters of which I’ve already scored three of the eight figures. Each set has the characters come in a plastic egg an each figure needs to be assembled. I’m enjoying acquiring these toys, and some of my friends are also enjoying my hunt, as they are getting my duplicate figures.

Oh yeah, as for the films I say, Public Enemies was quite good (although I really liked The Lady in Red much better). As I was already at the theater, I figured that I’d stick around and check out G.I. Joe, and — even though I was really pumped after seeing the trailer — I was very disappointed in the film itself. It is very hard for me to take a film seriously when it is clear that the producers of the film don’t take it seriously.

Actually, I liked Transformers much better than this film (yes, both of them). As a matter of fact, if the G.I. Joe squad had been a little more like the Rangers from the Transformers films, I would have liked that film much better.

Ah well. Sometimes you hit, and sometimes you get hit.

Dust Cover Copy

So I’ve mentioned that I’ve been writing for Marvel (again) lately. (The Official Index to the Marvel Universe) Well, that’s really only only part of the Marvel work that I’ve been doing. One of the other bits that I’ve been doing for them is penning the dust jacket cover copy for some of their hard-cover collections.

This is fun, and gives me access to the Marvel offices, and well, is really as entertaining as all get-out. Plus with the email loops that I’m involved in with the other writers, it feels like I’m part of this great big funnybook jam session, and what could be cooler than that?

Any who, enough of this, I’ve got to get back to it, chat more later.

To date, I’ve done four. Iron Man: The Art of Iron Man, the Movie (Hardcover) which covered the art of the wildly-successful film; Supreme Power: Contact Premiere (Hardcover) which collected the six issues of the Marvel Supreme Power comic by J. Michael Straczynski and Gary Frank; Spider-Man And The Human Torch (Hardcover) which collects the wonderful limited series that paired long-time friends Johnny Storm and Spidey (a personal favorite of mine); and — most recently — the up-coming TIMESTORM 2009/2099 (Hardcover) that collects the (not yet completed) mash-up of the current Marvel Universe with an altered version of the one from 2099.

Last night we all got roped into a big project that was fun (tedious and exhausting, but fun, none-the-less). I really feel that I’m having a good time again, and rebuilding some of the connections that I had back in the ‘80s & ‘90s.

Plus I’m still working on a number of freelance/Indie projects (including penning a number of scripts and developing some new ideas — more on those as they develop). In fact, I just finished off a couple of scripts last week, and am am part-way through a couple of more already.

Machine-Delivered Heroes

So, you recall me telling you all of my growing collection of “gum machine” superheroes? Well here are a couple of pics I snapped last night while attending Year One and The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 (Yep, Dylan & I went to see both of them).

Here is the front of the machine (I know I keep calling it a “Gum” machine, but that is because I really don’t know what else to call it. Anyone out there know what these things are really called?)



Here is a close-up of the figures themselves inside the machine.



Here they are on my desk (I’m still missing the Human Torch):

More Spidey, More Spidey, More Spidey!

Went to the movies last night to see Transformers, and while I was there I made my usual trip to the toy dispensers that are in the lobby. One of them contains Marvel characters packed in a little plastic egg. Well there eight toy figurines and I now have seven of them (only Missing the Human Torch).

Needless to say, I also managed to score five duplicates (two of which I’ve given away, one is slated to be given away, and the other two are sitting on my desk, looking for a good home.

The figures in the set are two Spideys (different poses)Wolverine, Ghost Rider, The Thing, Captain America, and Hulk. (The ones awaiting “homes” are an extra Hulk and Ghost Rider.) They each come in three pieces and need assembling.




They are very cool, and only a buck a figure. Whenever I go to this particular theater, I drop a buck (or two) into the slot and (hopefully) grab a figure I didn’t have. Well, like I said, I have only one more to go. Normally, I stop after I score the Spidey figure, but it wasn’t ‘til this last time that I managed to get the 2nd Spidey.