Though everyone seemed to be dragging today (except Stan Lee; where does he get that energy?), it was a great day at the con.  Hey, sure heading outside in the rain….  Here’s a taste of what you may have missed!

* Cool independent comics:
- The cool pulp-novel feel of Hard-Boiled Horror.  Horror with a noir feel, especially when it’s this beautifully illustrated, is a cool new twist I’m eager to see more of.
- Digital Pimp Online  (not just because of the cool name, but it don’t hurt) and their comic that resonated with me, “Joe Loves Crappy Movies”
- Conspiracy of the Planet of the Apes (because I’m on a bit of monkey love after Rise, and the drawings in this comic are amazing)
- The God Machine, for it’s eerie, lovely graphics
- The Hero Business, because it’s hilarious.
- Imperium Comics, because “Trailer Park of Terror” is my favorite title of the day, and the pencil-work and colors are awesome.
- Black Label Comics, because anyone who does a Hunginn & Muninn comic (based on the two ravens of Odin,,,that transform into human form by night)?  I’m in.
- And the adorable Shilong Pang, a webcomic that makes me wish I’d found it sooner.

* Hometown Boys Make Good:  Comics you need to get your paws on to 1) support our Baltimore peeps, and 2) feed an obsession you didn’t know you had….
- i taste sound: these twisted little bastards have my heart.  Not just because they had the coolest stickers at the con, but because I love a good pun.  Especially if it’s dirty and/or twisted.  Win!
- Heritage Comics HSQ: Because I love superheroes, but I love superheroes with a positive message even more.  And they’re drawn very well, and the guys are from Baltimore.  Niiiiice.

Panel News: random quotes and thoughts rattling around in my tin-can brain….

* Comics Jukebox: All Ages Comics in the Digital Age: The speakers let loose on their thoughts about digital media and comics, along with the possibilities for publishers and creators.  The big question?  “How can the internet help to let people be seen when there’s so much thrown in people’s faces?”  Scott Gallagher echoed Kevin Maguire’s comment yesterday; “(illustrations) look better on the iPad!”
- Everyone seems to be wondering what “the” format will be.  Lord knows you don’t want to be stuck with Betamax.  But the panelists seemed to agree that ePub was a great format to try to get in on…IF there was a way to make it friendlier to illustrated materials (perhaps an update or three?)
- The margins are closing in terms of the money to be made by artists/writers on printed issues vs. digital media. It’s comic stores + publishers + printing, or Apple (or whomever sends out the app) + comiXology.  So it looks like it’s up to individual creators to take their pick, or do both.
- Archie comics has been doing this a lot longer than the rest of the folks, and has special app-only content.  So folks wanting to see Little Jinx?  There’s an app for that.
- Sites/apps to check out: comiXology, iVerse, Comics Jukebox  and the Archie Comic Lab (for fans) and Kickstarter for artists and writers.

* Going Digital: Day and Date, and What You Need To Know: A discussion about the decision Marvel and DC Comics made to make their content available to digital readers the same day it’s available to hard-copy readers.  The panel was led by John D. Roberts, a co-founder of comiXology, but that didn’t stop the panelists from giving their true opinions. (Though most were all for a new medium to play with….)
- The best part of going digital to creators was the idea that there would no longer be  “running out” problems.  You know, when you go to a shop and they’re sold out?  Not anymore; you can buy a copy anytime.  Which will also be good for fans trying to catch up, and readers who want to start at the beginning.
- Artists and writers were both interested to see how this new format would affect their creativity.  Though I worry about the disappearance of two-page “splash” pages, the idea that artists could create even more detailed work that could be zoomed in on is pretty damn cool.
- As far as comic book shops going out of business with this?  Not likely.  The good retailers who know what they’re doing will know how to push social aspects of their shops (always a big selling point in comic book stores), and people who read comics online will want a trade hardcover of something they’re truly in love with.  In fact, I’d bet this push will get more readers to try comics in general.  After all, no tell-tale signs of nerdom to be found…it’s all tastefully hidden away in your iPad.  (Unlike my office, which looks like Nerd Wonderland.)
- Though there’s a worry that print media may go the way of the dodo, I think it’s here to stay. I’d rather have someone sign my most cherished hard-cover issue than my eReader or Droid.

* CBLDF: The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund needs your money.  Plain and simple.  But they didn’t do a hard sell, they just laid out the history of censorship in America, along with a few of their current/recent cases.  Check out Diana v. Florida and judge for yourself.  And it’s not just happening to stores and creators; a guy just got busted for bringing Manga over the border to Canada.  CANADA.  With everyone carting some sort of tech around with ‘em every day, the next person the CBLDF helps could be you.  Yeah I bought the t-shirt.  “I Read Banned Comics” — like I could pass that up?  That it’s in the Watchmen colors of black-n-yellow?  Bonus.

As for Stan Lee?  Yeah, I saw him.  And he was AMAZING.  But all the photos I took ended up craptastic.  I blame my (cheap) horrible camera.  Trust me though, a good time was had by all.

Check out my Twitter feed if you’re feeling a need for more (or if you want more pictures….)  Monday Rewind will be on hiatus tomorrow, but for now?  Enjoy  the teaser for Frank Miller’s new graphic novel Holy Terror, which is slated for release on the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.  As always, Miller delivers.

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Hey there fellow geeks and geekettes, fanboys and fangirls, and all you people who speak Elvish! The Baltimore Comic-Con  is this weekend at the Baltimore Convention Center. “But I’m a movie lover”, you say. “I don’t read comics, nothing there for me.”

Au contraire mon movie-nut. Herewith, 10 reasons why Comic-Con here in our hometown is a Very Good Thing. Roll film! Er, just scroll down.

1) You get to meet the creators of what could be the next big thing

The Walking Dead.  Art School Confidential.  American Splendor.  Cowboys & Aliens.  Blade.  The Crow.  Ghost World.  Surrogates.  Kick-Ass.  A History of Violence.  300.  They all started out as comic books/graphic novels.  If you want to know what’s coming down the pike, who better to ask than the folks that created ‘em?

2) Free shit!

I could tell you that I’ve attended Comic-Con in order to maintain my geeky credibility. But who am I kidding? I love the swag! Buttons, posters, free mini-comics, bags, shirts…I love it all. Wear my Green Lantern ring…well, more often than many of my friends would like. And I’m proud to say that one of my prized possessions is a mini-movie poster of 30 Days of Night signed by Steve Niles, the guy that created the comic and wrote the screenplay (and who’ll be here again this year, btw.) Score!

3) Stan the Man Lee.

You’ve seen him pop-up in the Marvel movies, like a modern-day Hitchcock. But in case you’ve forgotten, he is Marvel Comics. ‘Nuff said.

4) Mingling with fellow geeks…or genre lovers for you snobs out there.

Who doesn’t love meeting someone that shares a common love/interest/obsession? Well, you can pretty much guarantee that someone here? Loves what you do. And may be dressed up as your favorite character. Pleasepleaseplease, Dean Winchester, come out wherever you are! (Warning; deodorant is sometimes optional for longtime basement dwellers. Be friendly, but be aware.)

5) Sneak peeks and advance info!

You’ll get to chat with artists, writers and publishers, not to mention the folks from the studios that bring them to the big screen. Gotta love walking up to someone at an empty booth (tip: for said empty booth, you’ll want to get there on the early side, or stick around til later Sunday afternoon) and chat ‘em up. You’ll get to know when the next issue hits, what’s going on with the storyline, and who may be coming to a multiplex near you sometime soon. Doctor Strange, anyone?

6) Comic-Con only stuff

Is your pad looking a bit bare? Want some real cred? Cons are known for having “convention-only” stuff, whether it be free swag (I’m still lusting after the Supernatural salt shakers from San Diego), comics (must to have the Lady Death #7, Baltimore Edition) or shirts. Nothing says Geeker Than Thou than an exclusive item or two. Peep a bit of what’s in store here, though there’s always more once the con opens.

7) Stepping up for Baltimore

Don’t let San Diego and New York hog all the glorious Comic-Con action. Especially when Baltimore is the most old-school of these cons. No, not the oldest con — that’d be San Diego — but Baltimore gets down with the comics & graphic novels more than the rest have done of late.

8 ) Costumes!

Yeah there will be plenty of dress-up. So you can throw on just about anything and blend in, or just enjoy the folks who do. And if you’re not comfortable stopping random people to ask for a picture (and why not, they expect it), hit the costume contest Saturday afternoon and enjoy in relative anonymity.  Oh, and you can buy ‘em at the con too, if you suddenly feel the need to blend in.  There’ll be no judging…unless you want to enter the contest.

9) You’ll find a new addiction, or feed an old one.

Finished Hunger Games? Feel like you’re gonna be in for a long wait ‘til the next Song of Ice and Fire hits stands (hey, you prolly will be). Tell somebody at a con, and you’ll have a ton of new stuff to drool over. This is where I started my Walking Dead obsession, years before the show hit HBO. And ninja dude with the rubber sword? I still thank you. Bonus for fans of shows that are no longer around; many of ‘em have spun off in graphic form. A popular one for the tv crowd is Buffy: Season Eight and Angel, which may come together for Buffy: Season Nine.

10) Meet amazing artists…and maybe snag their work.

This year? I’m hoping to chat with J.M. DeMatteis, who started off writing horror for D.C., then did Justice League, and is now re-defining Spectre. Both Justice League and Spectre are lookin’ pretty good for film adaptations, methinks. Also? Jo Chen — can I get a what-what from the Speed Racer fans out there? — I really want to see her work up close. But honestly? The fun part of hitting this con is wandering the floor and stumbling on to an artist you’ve loved but never knew. Ever read a comic book, or seen a bit of animation that made you pause because it was so amazing? That person just may be at the con. Kismet. (The whole list of guests can be found here. )

Oh, and #11…I’ll be there! You can follow me on my Twitter feed and/or use the hashtag #atomiccomicon. I’ll be tweeting and twitpic’ing all weekend, feel free to chime in!

Too busy to catch up on movie news and assorted genre goodness last week?  Well, here’s a peek at some of the coolest stuff you may have missed!

* Box Office: Cowboys & Aliens beat The Smurfs for the top spot (though that’s not tough; the little blue guys are only three apples high….)  Cappy held firm in the top 5, with Harry Potter at number 4 and Crazy, Stupid Love opening at the 5th spot.

* Guillermo del Toro has been eyeing Willem Dafoe and Rob Kazinsky to add to the star power of Pacific Rim.  Me, they had me at monsters.  And Idris Elba.  No, I’m not obsessed.  I can put down my Luther dvds anytime I want to , thankseverso.

* Miss Harry Potter?  Of course you do!  But never fear, Daniel Radcliffe has shot out of the starting gate and into other projects.  Though you’d have to travel to NYC to catch How To Succeed In Business…, The Woman in Black will be in theaters February of next year.  Why the bump to the beginning of Cinema Wasteland?  So The Woman in Black won’t compete with the new Underworld movie that is opening the same time as their original start date.

* Single?  Wanna impress the lay-deez?  Well fellas, I don’t know about all the other girls, but the new Evil Dead II Deer Head accessory would…well, scare the [RADIO EDIT] out of me.  Which means you’d have the wimmin jumping into your arms.  Win?

* Or, you could just wait for the Linda Lovelace biopics to hit.  The latest gal that may play Miss Throat?  Olivia Wilde.  Not too shabby.

* One movie that I am thisclose to calling upon He Who Must Not Be Named to send his evil minions in to destroy is the possible Twins 2.  Oh yeah.  Let’s hope this never sees the light of day.

* More Comic-Con movie poster unveilings!  The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn part 1, The Raven, Happy Feet Two (and am I the only one who will miss Brittany Murphy?  Thought not.) Also, George Clooney’s The Ides of March, Stephen Soderberg’s Congation, and Kevin Smith’s Red State.

* “There’s gotta be more stars here than rehab!”  My thoughts exactly.  So enjoy the trailer for New Year’s Eve!

 

Since I was behind the 8-ball on getting SDCC image access, please enjoy this pic of the Tucker & Dale vs. Evil poster!

Why do so many people love Comic-Con?  It’s the peeks at genre movies that will be hitting theaters soon.  So what hit at this year’s San Diego lovefest?

In Time: coming this October, this story about how the world has “cured” people from aging…for a price stars Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried.  The idea of the human race charging for the ability to live forever…sounds about spot-on.  Can’t wait to see how the story plays out.

Drive: coming in September, Ryan Gosling plays a guy that gets to put his stunt-driver job to good use.    (WARNING: this is a Red-Band trailer, which means it shows R-rated bits.)  Tons of positive buzz on this movie!

 Paranormal Activity 3: I loved the first two in this series, so this trailer, that takes a look at how all this supernatural throwdown got it’s start, got me psyched.  And it opens right before Halloween? Badass.

Knights of Badassdom: speaking of badass, this is a movie that (replays my first year of undergrad with uncanny accuracy) looks to be what Your Highness wishes it could have been, a whole lot of LARP-ing goodness.  They had me at the title, they made it un-missable by casting Peter Dinklage and Ryan Kwanten.

Tucker & Dale vs. Evil: I love Firefly.  LOVE.  I love horror.  DITTO.  So when I heard that Alan Tudyk was starring in this spoof?  Let’s just say I’m counting the seconds ’til this opens in September.

 The Hobbit:  psyche!  No trailer, but a great video clip from PJ, released for the Con.  Nice!

 Fright Night: again, not a new trailer, but a fan-tastic clip of David Tennant “preten(ding) to be Russell Brand”.  Behold, for it is awesome.  (But if you don’t want to be spoiled when you see the film next month, I understand.)

Supernatural: yeah yeah yeah, I know.  “Supernatural isn’t a movie, it’s a tv show, idiot.”  Gotcha.  But I Don’t Care.  Supernatural is one of the best genre shows out there right now, so how can I resist popping up this clip of Cass losing his shit?  That’s right, I can’t.

Speaking of can’t resist, who’s with me for storming the gates at Baltimore Comic-Con?  Yeaaaaaah!

The other day TwitchFilm brought attention that LionsGate was going to re-release Kathryn Bigelow’s excellent Near Dark with a Twatlight inspired cover. While no amount of suck could ever ruin one of her films, this is disastrous for anyone expecting “another Twilight” when they see the cover because they’ll actually get an honest to goodness great film.

Now, Peter Sciretta of /Film has brought up another problem this poison is doing to our society to which I’m pretty much going to echo his thoughts. Anyone who remembers Comic Con 2008 and the Twilight panel knows what a disaster this is. For those not caught up, girls and mothers camped outside Hall H the night before to be the first ones in there. The problem was that Summit’s panel wasn’t until AFTER the 20th Century Fox panel that many wanted to attend. So as those types were lining up, Hall H was already full of people who didn’t want to see or care about the Fox panel, meaning many were turned away because of an already full hall that seats 6,000 people roughly. What happened after the Twatlight panel? 80% of the hall left to do other things at the convention.

This is a huge, HUGE problem this year because Summit is scheduled to go on after 20th Century Fox debut’s Avatar and Disney blows the pants off of everyone with their presentation. What’s basically happening is Comic-Con is forcing those who want to see Avatar and Disney to wait in line overnight to avoid being shutout like last year, or else the Hall will be taken up by fans who enjoy poison. Fans who could care less about Avatar or James Cameron or even what Disney has in store. Idiots who will likely screw true cinema goers and nerds out of being the first to see footage from one of the most anticipated films of the year.

There’s only one solution that doesn’t look like it could be done at this point and that’s moving Summit to the first panel of the day. Then you could get all the morons out of there if 80% will clear out anyway and make room for the people who will actually appreciate Disney and Fox. I understand that this line-up is all but final and schedules might have been printed, but this was a poor choice on somebody’s part and no one learned a thing from last year. Peter mentions doing two lines and while it could work, it may just cause more of a cluster at the already cluttered convention.

Something’s gotta give, or else Fox and Disney won’t reach their target audiences.

Already counting down the days until the 40th Annual San Diego Comic-Con International? Are you not because you were one of the unfortunate ones to not be able to get the tickets on time? I will tap onto that later, but first we’ll concentrate on Warner Bros. and what they have in store for us this year.

This studio tends to always have the biggest presentations, especially with their ‘tower’ booth on the main floor and the ridiculously huge bags that each one of the attendees crave for every year. This time around, their list on Hall H starts off on Thursday with the first ever 3D presentation (I know, how will they pull that off?) of The Final Destination, and not to confuse you, this is the 4th movie of the Final Destination series, not the first movie all over again.

Warner Bros. continues on by dominating the late morning/early afternoon on Friday. Going along with a huge list of film presentations between The Book of Eli, Where the Wild Things Are, A Nightmare on Elm Street, The Box, Sherlock Holmes and Jonah Hex, there is not a single film that doesn’t peak a person’s interest at the Con that they wouldn’t like to check out. Even though it is not confirmed, talk of a couple of cast and crew of each film would be at their respected presentations could most likely happen. What is confirmed though is Robert Rodriguez appearing for a Q&A session for his upcoming family friendly film Shorts.

Last but not least is the newest announcement, confirming that popular animated film director and writer Hayao Miyazaki will attend this year’s Comic-Con for the first time. Making his way in with brand new clips of his latest Japanese animated film, Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea, this particular San Diego convention is filling up with a bunch of famed first timers.

Also, if any of you still do want to go to this year’s Comic-Con and do not have any tickets, keep your eyes peeled at Comic-Con on Twitter for even more tickets that are on sale (for a limited time!). (Special thanks for SD Examiner, Coming Soon! & Warner Bros for the information)

Every little girl around the country is now even more excited after the final trailer for Twilight has come to us via the net. With 6 weeks left until the film hits theaters, it seems the buzz on this film is very large. Albeit, no screenings have hit or at least nothing is being said as of yet on teh quality of the film. The actors have had their fun at Comic Con along with all the other freaks out there, but not much has been said or seen until now.

Check out the full final trailer below and let me know what you think.

Is this just a Lost Boys wannabe or is this going to be the next Harry Potter craze?

So I’m looking over the tech blogs I visit on a daily basis and I run into a story about Joss Whedon. Yeah, that Joss Whedon…the guy that gave Buffy the Vampire Slayer a life and let us join in on the fun times the crew of the Firefly were having. Now Joss has gone back and made a musical unlike any other musical ever created. Yes, you heard me correctly….JOSS WHEDON MADE A MUSICAL.  I know that a few of you are now muttering to yourself that I have no clue that Joss had done a musical prior to this as an episode of BTVS. You’d be wrong.  See, I just noted that I know what he did when I said you’d be saying I had no clue.  See, my mind does work in it’s own wonders at times.

This musical is called ”Dr Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog” and is about a mad genius, Dr Horrible, that wants to join the Evil League of Evil as well as get to know the girl he sees at the local Laundromat during the week. His nemesis is Captain Hammer, the do-gooder of all do-goodiness. This three-part epic will be available online for FREE up to midnight, July 20th. You can get it on iTunes for a very good season pass of $3.99 and watch it from now to eternity on your Apple TV, iTunes, or iPod/iPhone.  A DVD will be out sometime this fall, look for the announcement from Comic-con sometime in the next week.

So who stars in this tour-deforce of a musical? I’ll tell ya so listen closely. Dr Horrible is played by Neil Patrick Harris (Doggie Houser), Captain Hammer is played by Nathan Fillion (Mal on Firefly), and the lady that Dr H is interested in, Penny, is played by Felicia Day (Vi on BTVS in 2003).

Click on over to www.DrHorrible.com and enjoy the musical fun that is “Dr Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog.”