It’s that time of the week again! Time to take all of your morals and common decency and run them through the shredder, because it’s time for a new Laser Brain podcast!
Laser Brain Podcast – Episode 13 Episode 14 – “Young Rove”
In this episode, the boys take a look at some of Nick’s old love letters, inside-out lady penis’, and dumpster candles!
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Also, Laser Brain would like you to take the time to check out:
StarWars.Com broke the news today that Star Wars 3D, starting with Star Wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace, will begin hitting theatres on February 10, 2012.
From their official announcement:
Lucasfilm Ltd. and Twentieth Century Fox announced today that the 3D theatrical launch of Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace now has an official release date — February 10, 2012! Set against the thrilling and exotic backdrop of a “galaxy far, far away,” Star Wars is perfectly suited to the immersive 3D theatrical experience, and Episode I delivers some of the Saga’s most stunning and spectacular sequences — from the Naboo invasion to the Tatooine Podraces to the climactic lightsaber battle between Darth Maul and the Jedi.
Supervised by Industrial Light & Magic, the meticulous conversion is being done with utmost respect for the source material, and with a keen eye for both technological considerations and artistic intentions.
No word yet on a release pattern for the rest of the films, though early speculation indicated a yearly pattern. I’m not as convinced of that, though, because this would be worthy of a Summer tentpole release on its own in 3D, not relegated to early February. Though anything is possible.
Like Han said of our heroes in the garbage masher, so too can I say for my wallet, “One thing’s for sure. We’re all gonna get a lot thinner.”
Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures announced yesterday that Diane Lane will be filling the role of Martha Kent in Zack Snyder’s upcoming Superman reboot! This is only the second major role cast in this film thus car aside from Henry Cavill as Clark Kent/Superman – though, rumors do have Kevin Costner circling the role of Jonathan Kent. No further news or rumors have surfaced lately on possible Lois Lane casting, or if Lois will even be in this film.
I think this is great casting, not only is Diane Lane ridiculously easy on the eyes, she’s a fantastic actress that could bring a lot to this adoptive mother role. Personally, I think Kevin Costner would make a great Pa Kent to Lane’s Ma Kent, so I’m hoping there’s some truth to that rumor! With two major parts filled in Snyder’s Superman “reboot” I can say I am pleased with the casting thus far and I’m excited to see what other names surface for the remaining characters yet to be cast. Is it possible that Snyder could be putting together the best Superman film to date? I certainly think the guy is capable of it, but Superman has been an awfully tough character to bring to the big screen so it’s going to be interesting to find out.
Zack Snyder’s Superman film is set for release in December 2012.
Official Press Release:
DIANE LANE CAST AS MARTHA KENT IN WARNER BROS. PICTURES’ AND LEGENDARY PICTURES’ NEW SUPERMAN MOVIE
BURBANK, CA, March 2, 2011 – Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures announced today that Oscar®-nominated actress Diane Lane will play Martha Kent, the only mother Clark Kent has ever known, in the new Superman movie to be directed by Zack Snyder.
Snyder stated, “This was a very important piece of casting for me because Martha Kent is the woman whose values helped shape the man we know as Superman. We are thrilled to have Diane in the role because she can convey the wisdom and the wonder of a woman whose son has powers beyond her imagination.”
Lane will star with Henry Cavill, who was recently announced as the new Clark Kent/Superman.
Lane earned an Academy Award® nomination for her performance in the 2002 drama “Unfaithful.” She most recently starred in the family hit “Secretariat.” She next stars in the HBO feature “Cinema Verite,” opposite Tim Robbins and James Gandolfini. Lane’s long list of film credits also includes “Nights in Rodanthe,” “Hollywoodland,” “Must Love Dogs,” “Under the Tuscan Sun,” “Perfect Storm,” “My Dog Skip,” “Chaplin,” “The Cotton Club” and “A Little Romance,” to name only a portion.
Charles Roven, Emma Thomas, Christopher Nolan and Deborah Snyder are the producers of the film. The screenplay is being written by David S. Goyer based on a story by Goyer and Nolan. Thomas Tull and Lloyd Phillips are serving as executive producers.
Slated for release in December 2012, the new Superman movie will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.
The fine folks at Archie have sent us a sneak peek at Veronica #205, on sale today! Popular new character Kevin Keller is back, and he’s Veronica’s new best friend! But with Ronnie spending all of her time talking to Kevin, is her relationship with Betty falling by the wayside? Will she ever get her cell phone back? Head on over to your local comic book selling establishment and find out!
VERONICA #205
“The Buddy System”
Kevin Keller, star of the SOLD-OUT Veronica #202, is back! Veronica and Kevin have become inseparable, but their constant contact is pushing away the most important person in Veronica’s life. Can Kevin and the gang help Veronica remember one very important date before it ends the world’s greatest friendship?
SCRIPT: Dan Parent
ARTIST: Dan Parent, Rich Koslowski, Jack Morelli and Digikore
COVER: Dan Parent
Shipping Date: 2/23/2011
On Sale at Comic Shops: 3/2/2011
Newsstands: Week of 3/15/2011
Comic, 32 pgs, 40 lb. glossy stock, Full-Color
$2.99 US
I honestly can’t wait until I can just type the headline “Captain America Trailer” without the word “Description” trailing it. The good news is though, that according to many sources out there we could be seeing the trailer as early next week, current speculation is attaching it to Battle: LA – but, we’ll have to wait and see.
I was able to track down this description that appeared earlier today on Super Hero Hype, who received this information from tipster “RealIrOnMaN” who claims he saw the trailer at the Russian Movie Expo :
* Steve (Pre Super-Soldier Serum) gets beaten by someone on the streets. Takes a part of garbage can as his shield. The guy, that beat Steve: “You just don’t know when to give up, do you?” Steve (looking all angry at this guy): “I can do this all day!” Sadly, Steve takes another beating from the guy.
* Steve: “Why me?” (chamber, full of scientists, generals. Steve gets inside the vita-rays capsule) Abraham: “Because alignment, because of value, of strength, because of value of power.” Steve gets injected by something, saying: “That wasn’t so bad.” Someone replies to Steve: “That was penicillin.”
* First look at Howard, looking real smart & classy. Chester Phillips: “We are going to win this war because we have the best man!” Abraham to Howard: “Now, Mr. Stark!” Chester Phillips: “They will personally deliver (or something, I don’t remember) Hitler to the gates of hell!” * Really good & long view of Steve’s painful transformation into Super-Soldier. Lights out! *Some army music plays* Everyone is shocked to see the brand new Steve Rogers. Howard Stark & Abraham Erskine are amazed.
* Steve & the Howling Commandos are inside some factory, with Schmidt’s goons around. Johann takes his human mask off & we get to see first full & clear shot of Red Skull’s face, that now looks even more violently red, than it was in the tv-spot. Cut to Howling Commandos wrecking shit and kicking butt, big explosions (some of them we’ve seen in the tv-spot), flying spaceship (here it looks incomplete, more CGI-ish), HYDRA firemen making a fire circle around Cap & HYDRA men in the forest near some car.
Sounds like your pretty basic action-packed Marvel trailer, enlightening us a little more to the story this film is going to tell. I keep going back and forth on exactly which movie I’m more excited for, Thor or Captain America: The First Avenger. As of this moment, since I have actually seen a lot of what Thor has in store for us, I’d have to throw my hat in that corner, but this upcoming Cap trailer could change everything. . .
The cult of Mac held another one of its holy sacraments today, announcing an update to its iPad that includes faster processing and graphics, more apps, two (count ’em, 2!) cameras, and a sleeker design that will reduce the thickness and heft of an ipad by 40%.
Apple had originally not committed to an appearance by Apple Pope Steve Jobs, who is an a leave of absence from Apple to focus on health concerns, but Jobs did indeed lead the press conference with his traditional style.
So what does all this tech mean? Well, the two camera system will facilitate not only taking pictures from your iPad, but also allowing you to use FaceTime chat (assuming, of course, you’re on a good wifi network and not a certain crappy 3g cell network). So, the typical Apple dance- consumers bitch about not having certain features at launch but line up in droves to buy one anyway, Apple obliges with new tech in 6-9 months, you buy a new one and sell the old one craigslist or give it to a family member, and the planned obsolecence cycle moves along.
The iPad will go from 13.4mm to 8.8mm, making it thinner than an iphone 4, and down from 1.5 lbs to 1.3. The new iPad will be available in white for those of you who like the color choices, and will be available for both AT&T and Verizon. It will stay the same price and keep the same 10 hour battery life, but don’t be confused– with the increase in processing and graphics keeping 10 hours of battery is pretty amazing. It will also come with an extra power-in slot and a HDMI out (full 1080p), so you can charge your iPad while using it– using it to stream a movie to your big tv, it sounds like!
They also introduced a new case, a SmartCover, which will come in several colors in poleurethan for $39 and in leather for $69. Jobs mentioned that they went to all this trouble to design a beautiful piece of technology and then everybody covers them up. The SmartCover will wake up the iPad when it’s opened, and put it to sleep when it closes, “kind of like a Pixar short.”
We’ll also be getting an OS upgrade with the launch (of course) which will take us to iOS4.3 for iPad and iPhone users. Added features include better streaming and sharing of content across wireless networks and the ability to turn your iPad into a hotspot (yay!).
They’re also adding some classic Mac apps to the app store: GarageBand and iMovie, which includes the ability to shoot video on the fly and then add voiceover using the built-in mic later, then matively zapping it to Youtube or CNN’s iReport. So the revolution may not be televised, but it will be iMovie’d. I love forward to SXSW that same week with a bunch of people running around with new iPads reporting on the festival. (And I’m going to be sooooo embarassed sitting in some of those interactive panels with nothing with an iphone 3)
And people are going to bitch about iPad 2- and rightly so. It’s not perfect, but it’s better than the first. But don’t worry- rumors are that there will be an iPad 3 out by the holidays (of course!) And there will probably be an eventual price drop, although with Apple selling almost 10 million of the first iPad, why should they drop the price? They own 90% of the market for tablets according to Jobs, and most of their competition is finding it hard to compete with the price point Apple already set.
But this is a huge step forward. More processor speed can only mean better gaming. So, you’re probably not going to be able to play DC Universe Online, but you’ll get something better than Angry Birds.
PS- Yes, i kid the Apple Acolytes out there with the cult comparisons- I can do it because I’m one of you, as I type this on my MacBook, then furiously check my iPhone, and when i get in my car you know I’m rocking music from my ipod. And if i had $500 I didn’t know what to do with, I’d be first in line to buy an ipad 2. Go get some.
Video streaming by Ustream
On this month’s Vidcast:
Sorry for the delay folks, we are getting this up a week later that we would have liked, but none-the-less here is the February edition of the Big Shiny Vidcast! In Part One of this month’s vidcast we talk the usual slathering of geek news, including rapey Beast in X-Men: First Class, Superman casting, and all of the various Superbowl spots!
We will be back next week with part two featuring a healthy dose of video game and comics talk! If you just can’t wait, you can watch the February Vidcast in its entirety on our Ustream page! Enjoy!
Podcast Format:
I like doing the Secret Origins column, I really do. I also like alliteration, which was great when I was posting these on Sunday. Now it seems that Tuesday into Wednesday is my de facto time to post them, I decided to drop the day of the week from the title. This probably concerns no one other than me, but I figured why not have an explanation just in case someone wonders. That being said, on with the show.
Since March ushers in springtime, and springtime means all the little fuzzy animals are coming out to play again, this month in Secret Origins will feature nothing but animal heroes! Now, I don’t mean folks like Puma, Wildebeest, or the Blue Jay, though that would be cool too. I mean I am showcasing heroes who are animals and to start with is my personal favorite. I credit Peter Porker for helping me get into comics at a young age. I would get a dollar every month from my aunt to spend at her workplace, which was an IGA. Since comics back then were 60 cents, I could pick up an issue of Spider-Ham and get some candy for good measure. It was a good time. Spider-Ham also became the first book I ever sent a letter to, it never got published, but I remember to this day I wrote about issue 13 which had movie monster parodies. Anyway, enough reminiscing. You guys came here to read an origin, but not mine. Let’s get on with, the Secret Origin of Peter Porker, the Spectacular Spider-Ham!
As with many Spider-Ham stories, this one opens in the offices of the Daily Beagle. J. Jonah Jackal and his apprentices the Junior Newsboys (Upton Cat, Bunsen Bunny, and Jeremiah Jackal Jr.) are having a brainstorm. An epiphany is reached, but we aren’t told what it is. J.J.J. whisks the youngsters out and they run into Peter Porker who is told by Jackal to meet them at the Junior Newsboy Clubhouse with his camera, as there will be shots galore to take. Peter, who decides he has a few hours to kill trolls around the Beagle offices. He decides to give his love life a shot in the arm by trying to romance the charming Batty Brant. She doesn’t seem to be interested…
Ah, Romance.
With an internal monologue to rival Spider-Man himself, Porker dries himself off and thinks to himself that he’s a grown pig, this won’t phase him! He’s gonna get right back on that horse and show Batty how much of a mature, cool and collected pig he is. And so:
Really, they’re as good a couple as David & Maddie
Peter then sulks to himself. As he continues his inner monologue, he knows he’s been stung to the core. He paces the offices of the Beagle, cursing his lack of social graces and his own abilities, asking whatever did he do to deserve this? Just as he is on his knees in a puddle of his own tears, the omniscient narrator takes us to flashback land, where we’ll indeed learn how Peter Porker’s lot and life became so “grim”.
Hey it's Peter! Waitaminnit...
Yes, our humble hero started out as a lowly spider, what a twist, eh? Wait, it gets better. As Peter sits in his web, heretofore unknown genius, May Porker is about to test her nuclear-powered hairdryer! She is convinced that this will make her the envy of scientists and hairdressers all over the world, but what happens instead could only happen in a comic that is a parody of another fantastic use of radioactivity!
Radioactivity! It's good for what ails ya! (Unless radioactivity ailed you)
Of course it went haywire! May, driven quite nutty over getting a healthy dose of nuclear power attacks the first thing in her sights. It is, of course, Peter the Spider. May shuffles over in zombie-like fashion and chomps the poor spider on the head. While you may think this would kill the arachnid, keep in mind we are dealing with comic book physics here…
Of course it did, Pete.
After that, Mr. Porker’s origin plays out much like Spider-Man’s own. he is spooked by a car and scales a building and the like, wondering all the while if he’s a spider with the limitations of a pig, or a pig with the proportionate strength and agility of a spider. He even meets with some of the locals…
Even after all these years, the book is still pretty funny.
After testing his new (old) abilities, Peter realizes that he left May unattended. I’m not sure if he goes back because he’s genuinely concerned or if he wants to make sure she doesn’t bite anyone else. At any rate, he gets back just as she is coming around. The ordeal really messed with May, as she immediately recognizes Peter as her nephew and offers to make him some cookies, her boundless intellect seemingly gone. Peter immediately plays along, and we find out it’s because he doesn’t want the shock to kill her and not because he wants free room and board. Go figure. The days go on, and Peter makes do with what he has…
Paranormal Crimbusterdom, eh? At least the narration is original.
Having made the decision to be a super hero out of the blue, Peter may not be the most committed hero in the books, but the Spider-Ham is born, which brings us back to the present. No sooner do we get back to Peter on his way to the clubhouse, he gets accosted by his high school nemesis, Flash Tomcat. rubbing Peter’s nose in the fact that he never has a girlfriend. This is the last straw for our hero, and he swears off superheroing for good (I told you he wasn’t committed). After his decision, Peter gets to the Junior Newsboy Clubhouse, where he finds Jonah and his three young charges dressed to the nine in superhero regalia. Rather than recount all four origins of the Black Jackal and his Beagle Brigadeers, I’m just gonna show you.
I want a novelty weight that says “several tons” just for fun.
The new heroes take off in their souped up Beaglemobile and take to the streets, with peter tagging along for photo ops. Before you know it, they come across Jonah’s old pal, Andy Warthog. Andy is enamored with the groups outfits and says they simply must attend his party later that night. Quicker than you can say “Campbell’s Tomato Soup”, they arrive…
Save me from bad pun names, someone, anyone!
We’re treated to another page of punderful name-dropping (I will admit Mel Gibbon was pretty inspired, though) before my prayers are answered with the arrival of the Hobgobbler!
You have to love a villain who picks a motif and sticks with it.
Peter is sitting on the sidelines as this happens, seeing as he’s quit the hero biz. Just then, Hobgobbler kidnaps Barbara Mandrill, the famous country singer! Luckily, we have super heroes already on the scene! Andy Warthog goes to fetch the be-costumed folk, but they are fast asleep, the lateness of the party catching up with them. Peter laments that no one can save Mandrill now, but he’s looking out for number one from now on. Peter then proves he has what it take to be considered a hero, and his uncle didn’t even need to be shot!
In case you were wondering, that’s Mick Jaguar.
And so, the Spectacular Spider-Ham is in hot pursuit. He chases Hobgobbler across the rooftops, dodging tomato bombs all the way. Some choice banter back and forth ensues, until Spider-Ham decides it’s time to end this…
“Oh, Hi there Mr. Fi– OWWW!”
With the first (and only) punch thrown, Hobgobbler high tails it, dropping Ms. Mandrill as he makes his getaway. Spider-Ham makes a spectacular catch, and returns her safely back to the party. Back in his civilian clothes, Peter is now tasked with taking the still sleeping Jackal boys back home, lamenting a hero’s work is never done. Don’t feel too bad for our stalwart hero though, things may finally be taking a turn for the better in his love life once he gets home to Aunt May.
And there you have it. I was actually pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed reading this story as an adult. It does what all ages books should do, appeal on multiple levels. Sadly, a mere two issues after this was published, Spider-Ham started walking the road to obscurity, forced into the backup of Marvel Tales, and then limbo. Recently, he has re-appeared in a truly awful Civil War one-shot, and a pretty great 25th anniversary issue. Time will tell if the whole hog is back for good!
This story originally appeared in Peter Porker #15 May, 1987 As far as I know it has not been reprinted, but Marvel has made a digest of early Peter Porker stories available.
Ok readers, still here? I hope you liked this week’s Secret Origin! What animal would like to see for the rest of this theme month? Captain Carrot? Rocket Raccoon? Just a Lotta Animals? Tell me in the comments, and I’ll see what I can do!
Company: KIDROBOT
Artist: Mori Chack
Sculptor: Takeo Ohno
GLOOMY: THE NAUGHTY GRIZZLY
VERSION-“POUND”
One of my new favorite figures being displayed this week is Mori Chack’s “Gloomy”. The 4.5″ display friendly figure is simple and hilarious. Let’s start with the details.
Not much intricacy, just solid soft colors. Gloomy is obviously pink with dark red blood splatters on his face and arms from attacking his owner “Pity”. Pity is struggling to free himself from Gloomy’s clutches, but the severe brain hemorrhaging and slash marks seem to have got the best of him.
The box is really sturdy and is just as easy and smooth as the characters inside. On back there is a short story introducing you to Gloomy and some small stats about him. Both the left side and top of the box have a simplistic preview of whats inside waiting.
Although its obviously for an audience 15 or older, it does have a small charm of innocence about it. Compared of course, to what violence young kids are exposed to through the media, vidja games, and the Black Eyed Peas (probably the most dangerous threat to earth).
I highly recommend this in your collection. It’s funny, small enough to display about anywhere (boxed or not), and for once the “white-man” is down…or at least in and out of consciousness.
Continuous Pound Gloomy Bear starts around $29.99
Don’t let slick presentation and the overwhelming critical praise fool you, many of your favorite independent comics like New Brighton Archeological Society are produced wholly out of pocket at great cost to the creative team, making the endeavor a labor of love as much as a very real economic gamble for hard working artists. While this harsh reality of publishing outside of the big two (Marve & DC) allows for creators to sidestep bureaucracy and maintain maximum control over their books it also makes it damn near impossible to press on at times given the economic realities of the publishing world, even for someone as well established and respected as Mark Andrew Smith. (New Brighton Archeological Society, Amazing Joy Buzzards, Aqua Leung etc.)
Dave Banks over at wired.com spent a few moments with Mark discussing the current state of independent publishing, the state of all ages comics and the new Kickstarted campaign behing the second installment of his all ages epic, New Brighton Archeological Society.
Here’s an excerpt from their conversation:
GD: You’re getting ready to work on NBAS Book Two and you’ve turned to Kickstarter to help generate funds, yet you are a proven producer of award winning books. Why is it necessary for you to personally go out and raise money?
MAS: We’re eight thousand dollars in the red on the New Brighton Archeological Society Book One for coloring and lettering costs. I put up the money that I made teaching to pay for the costs on the first volume. We do our work for free, creating the book, and both have full-time jobs that enable us to createThe New Brighton Archeological Society. If we have to, we’ll put in our own money for the second again. I think there is an assumption because we put out such a polished book, have critical acclaim, and awards, that we have a publishing deal and get a huge advance to produce New Brighton. But it’s not the case.
We front the cost of producing the book and promoting the book. The publisher prints it and the distributor distributes it and that’s the short version of it. But the production money comes out of our own pockets and if we don’t get past a break-even point for publishing, then we don’t recoup the money that we invested into the book. In the model we’re publishing under, we’re the last to recoup. In that way it’s upside down. I think we have an excellent book and that trying something a little new and different, such as Kickstarter, can help us to finance the second volume and get it to readers in a more timely way.
Read, donate, spread the word.
A project well worthy of your support, not because it’s independent but because it’s be damn good.