This Week in Comics

Justice League of America #2 is Brad Meltzer's second issue into his run. Second issues are always tough because you start off with a bang then it leads into the dreaded second issue where the author has to bridge the gap. It is the ultimate bore because in this issue you have to actually explain where the storyline is going to go. Brad does a good job although it seems he is taking alot of liberties with the audience knowing alot of historical background. Beyond the Big 3 I have no ideal who the heck is Redd Tornado so basically I'm lost....



Issue 100...Wow! An impressive run that Bendis has put together. The Clone Saga seems somewhat forced to me...trying to tie into the normal Marvel universe. Good tie in to the overall saga but I was hoping for a bit more out of a momumental issue unfortunately it only leads to more questions. Not for sure where this is all going but I am sure Bendis will have a surprise for us...

Grant Morrison's Batman is okay. Not for sure where is he taking this...I have always trusted Grant on giving a good story so I will give him a chance. Batman having a son is interesting let's hope it doesn't fade away into typical comic sleight of hand trick.











Total filler issue...they need to find some continuity otherwise this comic is done..

Heroes...Check It Out

Frankly I am not a big TV fan especially since I survived reality TV. It appears networks have figured it out that reality isn't where it is at...thank god! It looks like dramas are making a come back. As mentioned I don't watch alot of TV but occassionally a show perks my interest and I will give it a ride. Alias was like that, the X-files, Twin Peaks, Friends...to name a few. Anyway when I saw the ads for "Heroes" and being a comic fan I figured it was my comicgeekdom in me that said to give it a try. I tried and I liked. It was a bit graphic but the overall concept has merit and I think I will come back for more so I can see how our heroes come together to save the world or at least New York City!

Dave Matthews Band

Today's music review is brought to you by The Dave Matthews Band. As a baseball lover I just had to get this! I love how the band jams and to play at Fenway Park in Boston well its just too good to pass up! If you have ever been to a baseball game at Fenway then you know that they play Sweet Caroline after the 7th inning stretch. My first experience at the Ballpark and then suddenly hearing 30,000 plus fans screaming a Neil Diamond song was just too much...anyway Dave does his rendition of the classic and it's great. Two shows, 35+ songs...great album(s).

Here We Go Again...

Monday....Ughhhh....Tired! All my teams beat the spread this weekend

AF vs Wyoming 31 - 24 (Wyoming by 1)
Georgia vs Colorado 14 - 13 (Georgia by 27)
Broncos vs Patriots 17 - 7 (Patriots by 7)

So far teams are 5 -1 against the spread. Interesting but not all that relevent. No movies this weekend. Went to the Rockies/Braves game on Saturday night and froze! September baseball in the Rockies! Did go to the Museum of Contemporary Art and saw the Extended Remix. A show portraying local Colorado artist. Fantastic goofy show...loved the artist who tries getting his work into the Guinness Book of Records for his art. He submitted his canvas painted white looking to get into the book as world's greatest art. He also sent in the lightest feather, the crumblest paper, and world's worst babe ruth fake autograph. Great stuff and the don't get me started about the Red Telephone!

If 6 was 9?

Running along today I was listening to my iPod and was listening to Jimi Hendrix....Words for today..

(yeah, sing a song bro...)
If the sun refused to shine
I dont mind, I dont mind
(yeah)
If the mountains ah, fell in the sea
Let it be, it aint me.
(well, all right)

Got my own world to live through and uh, ha !
And I aint gonna copy you.

Yeah (sing the song brother...)
Now if uh, six uh, huh, turned out to be nine
Oh I dont mind, I dont mind uh ( well all right... )
If all the hippies cut off all their hair
Oh I dont care, oh I dont care.
Dig.

cause Ive got my own world to live through and uh, huh
And I aint gonna copy you.

White collar conservative flashin down the street
Pointin their plastic finger at me, ha !
Theyre hopin soon my kind will drop and die but uh
Im gonna wave my freak flag high, high !
Oww !

Wave on, wave on...

Ah, ha, ha
Fall mountains, just dont fall on me
Go ahead on mister business man, you cant dress like me
Yeah !

Dont nobody know what Im talkin about
Ive got my own life to live
Im the one thats gonna die when its time for me to die
So let me live my life the way I want to
Yeah, sing on brother, play on drummer

Play on Jimi, play on...

Football lines for the weekend

AF vs (Wyoming) 1
27 (Georgia) vs CU
Broncos vs (Patriots) 7

Have a good weekend...

This Week in Comics

Astonishing X-men 17 by Whedon and Cassaday came out this week and what can I say....WOW! It has been a while since a writer and artist have captured my attention. When Astonishing comes out I usually rush to the store to see what is in store for our merry mutants. This latest storyline with the return of the Hellfire Club has been spectucular. Although it's lineage can be traced back to the Phoenix Saga, Whedon pays homage to one of the best serials ever. Each issue has been a cliffhanger with me wanting more. Last issue it was the re-appearance (?) of the original White Queen...this issue...well not to spoil it but my comic hero comes through in a big way. Thank god, the return of the real Scott Summers! Thanks Whedon for making the X-men fun to read! Can't wait for 18!

Overall I think Brian K. Vaughan is the best writer going right now. All of his books are niche books that are tremendously written. The Runaways is the little book that could. Canceled a thousand times, it still plugs along. Just read that Brian is leaving the book with Issue 25 and guess who is taking it over? None other than Mr Whedon! Sweet! As mentioned this book is well written and the character interactions are what make this book special. They really don't fight any A list baddies but they do fight well among themselves. Great characterizations.


I admit I was a late starter on this series. As mentioned in my previous rant, I thought the whole Civil War thing was a gimmick trying to keep up with DC. Pitting Marvel heros against one another is an interesting scheme. Having Spider-man reveal his secret identity...big time! I figured if they were going all the way like this I'd better get in the know. Started last month with #3, decent read and have to admit I am with Captain America on this one. Book #4, well I'm really starting to doubt this whole Civil War thing. It seems too forced and not honest with the Marvel Universe...I feel (again) like their trying to DCify. This book had all kinds of wacky stuff...I cloned Thor!?, a dead mutant (is that 197 now?)!?, and finally an evil Avengers with Bullseye and Venom!? Come on how insane can this get (or how stupid). Oh well I used to like the Marvel world...

Friends

Met an old friend from high school tonight. Friendship is truly a wonderful thing that people don't put enough weight into. Where else can you not see someone for years but then see again and have a flood of old memories. U2, sneaking out at night, old boyfriends/girlfriends, old classes, the struggles (!) of high school. Good stuff!

Vegas Owes Me...Baby

Why do I have the standings posted? Why would I care that the Roxs are in last place with a pathetic 70 - 80 record? Well Caesar's Palace cares because they owe me! Yup that's right I am a pathetic baseball bettor. I put a whopping $20 on the Roxs to win more than 69.5 games. So for me, I'm done doesn't matter what they do the rest of the way...they met the magical number! Whoopeee

Thoughts for the Day....

Movie for the weekend...Everyone' Hero. A tale of the Yankees, Babe Ruth's Bat and a Talking Bat! Directed by the late Christopher Reeve it is a kid's tale about a boy and his love of the game. Decent kid movie, story, and presentation. Not a big Yankee fan (Go Sox!) but can't pass up a baseball movie that you can take your kids to! I give it two hmmmms.

Next one the agenda...ASU covered the spread and Broncos didn't but did squeak under the over/under ;-)

ASU 21 CU 3 (10 1/2)
Broncos 9 KC 6 (10 1/2 O/U 40)

And finally the quote of the year from The New Yorker September 18, 2006 issue page 45 bottom of the 1st column and I quote the quote, "I am sick of Karl Rove's Bullshit" attributed to William J Clinton...Thank you and I couldn't have said it any better

Next!

Friday!!

Well I made it through the first week of blogging! Whoopee. Just some random notes for the last post of the week. For curiousity sake I will be tracking football point spreads. So for this week I am tracking:

Arizona State vs. CU 10 1/2
Denver vs. KC 10 1/2 Over/Under is 40

On Monday I will update so I can track the spread. Finally for entertainment purposes I will be busy with Star Wars LEGO II. Call me a geek! Check out the details at Wookiepedia, http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/LEGO_Star_Wars_II:_The_Original_Trilogy

Comic Book Day

Well this will be a weekly installment (assuming I stop by the comic store that week). I have been a comic book reader for 20 years. Started with G.I. Joe but soon found myself immersed in the X books. X-Factor #9 was my first issue and it certainly is one reason the site is named the way it is. I do miss the old days. Writers and artists did seem to stay longer on titles...there was more continuity and stories weren't too convoluted. Today it seems stories go every which way, artists come and go, writer's move on. Continuity is a mess. I often have to go to wikepedia just to get a feel for what is going on. I think part of this is the reason comic books have become more adult. I do like what Ultimate Spiderman has done as far as self contained stories. I am a Marvel homer not that I haven't had DC moments but overall I stick with what I am most familar with...

Light week this week, just 2 books to review. The Escapist series has been an on and off again love affair. I loved the book by Michael Chabon. One reason comics appeal to me is that it is essentially an American creation much like baseball and jazz (my two other loves). This new Escapist series is fascinating in its set up. Brian K Vaughn is telling a story within a story. It is a compelling story line about a guy who buys the Escapist because of his father's love for the character and then gets his friends to help out so that he can republish the comic. As a publicity stunt, he has a friend dress up as the Escapist and then by chance the Escapist thrawts a burglery and thus becomes famous. Book 3 is a continuation of the growing love between the writer and artist captured by the love between the Escapist and Luna Moth. I am anxious to see where this all goes and whether this set up will continue...

I can't complain about the rivalry between Marvel and DC. I think ultimately it helps the industry create a better product. DC has certainly been the trend setter with Marvel trying to catch up. Unfortunately this to me has created a mess in the Marvel world. Trying to come up with a mega event to match its rival only messes up any continuity that Marvel is trying to create. I mean House of M, great concept but what did it really mean...really only 198 mutants? Who are they and what will it mean? and then BAM! we have Civil War and suddenly the House of M is pushed to the side and we have another new mess. I can only imagine what writers try to do in constructing their plots! But I digress! 52 is a great concept and I'm amazed they have kept up. I have read the book for almost 20 weeks, the first month was really good and reallly kept me interested but of late it has just lost me. The characters don't really mean much to me. (Booster Gold??...whatever!). I'm not really into the DC mythos so trying to figure out what these "B" characters are doing and where this is taking the DC universe just doesn't wow me. I gave into the hype that was "Identity Crisis" and came away cheatedI gave it a shot but I think'll I move on.

Night at the Broadmoor

Pictursque evening at the Broadmoor. Hope to get a bee at the Golden Bee...just like old times!

Colorado Rockies Record

I am a big baseball fan and a particular fan of the Colorado Rockies and Boston Red Sox. I have charted the Rockies over the past 13 years to try and understand baseball a little better at 5,280 feet. In this vein I track month to month, home and road, runs scored and runs against.

The obvious glaring stat is that the Roxs have scored more runs then allowed. What does this mean? Well according to Bill James pythagorean wins it means the Roxs should have about 5 more wins then what they do. Projected out over the season it means the Roxs potentially could finish 82 - 80 a little more respectable then 76 - 86 (expected finish based on present winning percentage). What does this tell me...well at least our sophomores are starting to win but it is a far cry from what they need to win the division. Additionally they haven't had a lot of luck in close games which is ultimately due to them not getting hits in late innings with potential winning runs on base. Anyway we shall see what happens during the next 19 wins.

Remember...

And So it Begins.....

Creativity at work or at least some pre-frontal cortex activity. So to begin....a movie preview



The movie is a period drama directed by Neil Burger and starring Edward Norton, Jessica Biel, and Paul Giamatti. The film comes from the producers of Crash and Sideways. 2006 seems to be the year of the magician has this is the first one out of the gate. The second being "The Prestige", starring Scarlett Johansson and directed by the Christopher Nolan of Mememto fame. But I digress, The illusionist was a good three hmmms (out of 4). The acting from Ed Norton was his typical A+ effort. Paul was good support and Jessica did an okay job. She was basically a set piece for the majority of the movie not really given any real acting duty. The magic was neat but I was unable to track down any "history" or truth to the movie. A good ending but overall somewhat predictable. A satisfactory movie for a Saturday night.