Friday Links

Self-link: Aquaman's one-hour limit and Silver Age beginnings.

Publicity for Minx.

Dorothy of Oz gets mentioned at Bookslut.

Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed #117.

Speech Bubble Logos.

Stan Lee Movie Cameos (YouTube).

Heroes Season 2 Promo (YouTube).

Everyone is talking about Todd McFarlane's take on Oz.

Don't like Spam? How about bacn?

Here's what I don't get about Wikipedia. If it's supposed to be all-inclusive, why do people attempt to delete articles that are clearly informative? I can see deleting joke articles, or articles that are incorrect. But why delete a singer or cartoonist's entry just because "no one" has heard of him? Isn't that the whole POINT of wikipedia, that people can find out more? UPDATE: Tom Smith Filked his Wiki experience.

Blogging certainly can be reporting. Some of us are echo chambers, but some blogs DO report. Generalizing about blogs is the same as saying all magazines are identical, or all TV shows are exactly the same. It only proves you have no idea what you are talking about. Michael Skube should have known better.

Stephen Colbert's Cast on eBay. It was only $735 when I checked this morning.

There's a hole in the universe.

The Most Kissed Girl in the World.

Community Drug Tests.

Greetings from Seattle, 1942.

First posted on April 1st, this story is pretty funny on it's own (bigfoot spotted at site of new ski resort, environmentalists attempt to claim endangered animal protection of the site). But this quote just put it over the top for me:

A spokesman for the Wolf Creek Development Company, Farmhead Bunmunch, told the Post in an exclusive interview Sunday that the supposedly controversial footage was a joke played by Wild Colorado, or possibly by some of their supporters. "All I see is some idiot jumping around in a monkey suit, acting like he's a Saskachewan [sic.] There's no controversy here... It's just those Colorado Wildness people joking with you."

I can't stop laughing. Bigfoot is a Saskachewan! By the way, don't bother watching the vids. Really bad acting.

Opus is censored. This article links to one of the strips.

Dogs and Vick.

For the in-laws: Pug Skydiving.

Sep 15-19 is "Holy Pasta Week"
Plan your menus now.

Massive Linkdump, YAY!

Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed #114.

Bratz are the X-Men for girls. Thanks, Lea.

The mayor of San Diego is a complete jerk.

The Comics Reporter's Collective Memory of San Diego Comic Con 2007. Newsarama San Diego Linkages.

Dorothy has Demographics.

Scholastic Fairs Pick Up Amelia Rules! I used to buy TONS of books through Scholastic and such. My father never denied me books.

Jim Rugg draws Aquaman. Oh, and some other news, too. Check out Jim Rugg's LiveJournal. Scroll down to see the Aquaman images, or click the following links: The Plain JLA, Three Aquaman Images 2, Three Aquaman Images 1.

J K Rowling is a great storyteller, but sometimes her writing could use a bit of work. This is just one example of why some people like me (English grads) pull out hair even while we enjoy Harry Potter.

Coyotes and Google Maps.

Oh dear. Just watch the vid. Heh.

Ah! This article explains why I feel hungry after drinking chocolate milk or hot cocoa (both very rich in calories). Piece by piece we understand ourselves better.

Man, I really want The Popeye DVD Set. Although it's incredibly unlikely, maybe some rich person is slumming in my blog and will buy it for me from my Amazon Wishlist. I know, not gonna happen, but a girl can dream.

Every single piece of DRM invented has been cracked. Why keep wasting money on useless security devices instead of making products better and cheaper so people won't be tempted to pirate them.

Singing about Mathematics.

Overdue Reviews

Tony Loco #2: Enter the stuffed elephant! This issue of Tony Loco, which hit the shops yesterday, continues directly from the last issue. It also can stand alone if it must, as Tony is introduced along with all the main players. It's still impossible to tell if Tony is truly insane or if there is magic around him, and that's a lot of the power of this book. Will it matter what drives him if in the end he is a force for good? There's more about Tony's youth in this one... two flashbacks that give us some grounding for why he's in an institution now. The first darker one brought on by the rattlesnake tail is done in reds with the jagged art of a terrible dream. Bright colors and clean art drive the cheerful memories pulled in by the singing stuff elephant (speaking of, does someone have a translation of the words of his song? I can get the gist of it, but I'm sure I'm not completely correct). Some of the artwork, particularly the faces of other characters, still bothers me a bit. But the story is compelling, and I want to read more. Buy this book, folks. Make sure issue three gets to stores soon.

Dorothy #7: "Red In Tooth and Claw": It's no secret that I've been enjoying this darker take on Oz since the first issue. But I confess that this issue is possibly my favorite because of several interesting factors. We'd already been introduced to the Scarecrow and the Tin Man, and you all know who comes next! As with the alternate versions of the others, the alternate version of the Lion is both considerably different, and wonderfully the same as in the original tale. Pulling in more Oz mythos, he's found in China Country, the land of the living porcelain. And oh, how that little fact is revealed! Add in very impressive visuals of a very impressive storm, and this one is definitely right up there at the top. I can understand why some people wouldn't want to read another version of the ol' Wizard of Oz story (trust me, I of ALL people understand that!)... but this is the most original take on the tale that I've seen in all of my husband's collection. It owes much to the source material, but goes its own way. I recommend it to anyone willing to try something a bit different. Go on, give it a shot!

Catching Up Lunk Dimp

Still trying to get through all the usual 'netting that I missed during the convention. Poor hubby-Eric is very sick, as well. I've thrown together a handful of links, and if I've got the energy I'll do a real Ripples Through Time tonight as well. I'm also working on my con reports.

Dorothy Temporary Tattoo status: Still mostly intact after two full days.

CBR reports on Emerald City Comicon.

Chris Diverts Us.

On Harassment.

I wouldn't mind this fate.

Dell offering LINUX. I still keep meaning to move over to LINUX, or at least dual-boot for a while to try it.

Hugo Nominees. I've actually seen four of the five "Dramatic Presentation, Short Form" noms. I'm rooting for "Girl in the Fireplace".

Aaron Williams has some good links, especially the How To Make A Simple Motor one. I also like the fish in the Deep Fryer, as also seen on Boing Boing, with more explanation.

Don't be a Chump. Don't give in to the RIAA.

April Fool: Gmail Paper.

Really Rapid Reviews

Rather than risk the drive in the snow to my weekly swim, I stayed home last night and read comic books. For the first time in ages, I have the reviews written the same week the books came out.

These are mini-capsules: about one sentence per book with whether or not I recommend the book.

28 February 2007

52 Week Forty-Three: "Family Matters": Figures. I actually like Osiris, and was getting used to Sobek. Very mildly recommended.

Action Comics #846: "Last Son Part Three": Um. Ok. Haven't I seen a plot like this already? Neutral.

Green Lantern #17: "Wanted: Hal Jordan" Chapter Four: Batman being chosen first was interesting. The rest was not much to me. Mildly recommended.

JLA Classified #35: "Torrential Reign": Another reality, another mistake. I want to like this story, but it just seems ok. Mildly recommended.

JSA Classified #23: "Nightfall" part 1 of 2: I'm not a big Doctor Mid-Nite fan, but this story was ok. Mildly recommended.

Justice #10: My head is spinning. WHAT IS BRAINIAC DOING TO POOR ARTIE JR?!?? Ahem. Recommended.

Noble Causes #27: I like how I can pick this book up and figure out what's been happening, thanks to both the summary in the front and just how well written it is. Recommended.

Wisdom #3: "Enter With Drag On": Ok, I didn't much like the first two issues of this book, mostly because I had a hard time following the action, I think. This issue was so much better for me it's not even funny. I actually enjoyed this issue. Not like I enjoy lots of books, but the whole Welsh Dragon thing hit some happy spot for me. Mildly recommended.

Fallen Angel #13: Just what are the players in this book? Archetypes, clearly, but of what? This book annoys me because I can't stop being interested in it. Recommended.

Dorothy #7: HA! The entire famous foursome are finally together, kicking butt and taking names! And we get to see more behind the scenes action from the other side of the story. Highly recommended.

True Story, Swear to God #4: This one hurts. No, I mean literally. A few years back I was similarly stupid and got a very bad sunburn. I know EXACTLY what it feels like. I could not have done what he did. Strongly recommended.

Action Philosophers #8: "Senseless Violence Spectacular": The earliest issues of this series were the most effective, but it's still a really good book. Recommended.

Weather Linkdump

Ah, Wednesday! I've got a number of places to go... errands to run, comics to pick up, I might drop by work to discuss things with L, and swimming tonight! All in my van that has bald tires... so as I'm working through my 'netting, I look up and out the window and am stunned to see it's snowing. Ok, no big deal, I thought, it's light, it'll rain, I'll still get my errands in today. An hour later it's still snowing. But hey, it isn't sticking to the roofs or road, so I'm fine. Right. An hour later, it's sticking. There's a nice sheen of snow on the road outside. I turned on the news, to see how widespread the snow is. Nothing at all about it still snowing anywhere. Oh boy. The shops I'm going to don't open for another hour. I don't know if I'm getting out today. I doubt swimming is going to happen, as I dare not drive that van in these kind of conditions in the dark.

Oh weather, why must you mock me so?!

The Comic Treadmill reviews Tony Loco #2, which I will be doing soon as well.

Speaking of Illusive Arts, they want to know if fans of Dorothy would like to buy yellow foam bricks as a promotion. Go fill out the survey. I want a few yellow bricks to throw at hubby-Eric.

Congrats to Heidi on her weight loss! I know just how hard it can be.

MetaFilter gives us lots of handy links to the death of honeybees story that really should be front page news, considering just how it's going to hit crops in North America.

How not to impress people: write a screed against copyright violation when you illegally use copyrighted images on your own site. Methinks it's more of that "do as I say, not as I do" attitude.

ART THEFT ALERT: At least two Picasso paintings worth millions of dollars were stolen from the home of Picasso's granddaughter.

Milk: It Does A Body Good. If you have the right genes for it, at least.

Jon Swift covers Conservapedia, and a comment on that post tells the evolution, oops, DESIGN, of the tree octopi! And if that wasn't enough, Wired is also covering the story. I have to disagree with that second-to-last paragraph, though.

Blurgh!

Garrett is joining the fight against leukemia. Consider a donation if you have any cash to spare.

Dorothy #7 is about to hit the stands. *WHAM*

Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed #91. Hubby-Eric wants to know when the book is coming out.

Brian Wood gets letters.

Jeff Parker continues to speak of the forbidden. What a brave, brave man.

This reviewer clearly has read the book.

The Seattle Times is excited about Pogo collections.

Hey, where's Oz? The DC Universe map is interesting... it contradicts the recent map in Aquaman (and probably pre-dates it by awhile, too).

Masi Oka and Stan Lee behind-the-scenes.

Paul says to go listen to song. I did, I laugh. Ha ha ha ha!

Twenty-Six Toes!

This guy is right out of Usagi Yojimbo.

How to Avoid Colloquial Writing. Just reverse all the instructions, and you have lessons on how to write blogs. Via Unqualified Offerings.

Comments about the food service on campus. I recall our dining hall up at Western had a very responsive staff, even when we made up foods to complain about.

A Total Lunar Eclipse is coming March 3rd! Sadly, I'm too far West to see it.

I want.

Can we trust an accounting firm to count the Academy Awards?

Great Headline of the Day: Naughty potty to blame for accident on I-5.

SETI@Home finds a stolen laptop.

On-ice beating may have saved hockey ref's life.

The History of Electronic Arts. Oh man, I loved those games. I'd love to play Standing Stones again.

All of my hunting through old comic books to find old Aquaman stories has given me an appreciation of Mutt and Jeff, so it's good to see that those tales are being reprinted. Couldn't happen to two nicer guys.

The Leaky Cauldron reports on hubby-Eric's friend Gili Bar-Hillel, the Hebrew translator of the Harry Potter books (and a big Oz fan).

Wanna go Skyfishing.

Ooooh pretty picture of a Russian rocket blowing up over Australia.

One way to prepare for a possible flu pandemic: store food and water.

Beware Young People. Be sure to follow the links, the Penny Arcade note from the stepmother of one of the murderers is absolutely heart-breaking.

Linkages For A Monday Afternoon

I just put up another round of eBay auctions to support KBTC. We haven't started selling hubby-Eric's Green Lantern stuff yet, but that'll come soon, I think. I know at least one reader of this blog bought an item off me in the last round of auctions, and I thank you kindly for supporting PBS through us!

I laughed aloud at this one: Poorly Positioned Firing Squads.

The Dorothy folks have announced the shipping date of the much-delayed chapter seven. If you ordered it, look for it on February 28th. If you didn't order it, why not?

Those same folks also alert us that The Baum Bugle is out, a fact which I can confirm as hubby-Eric's copy arrived in the mail today.

Ha! Check out the poster on the wall in this comic. I'm surprised I didn't notice it in previous strips (I checked, it did appear, along with some other interesting posters).

The Templar Arizona Preorder Project worked! $3227 was raised to get the story onto paper. You can still preorder and keep up with the news on the project. Congrats to Spike for the success!

If you have access to the NY Times page (free registration, I think), check out Unhappy Meals, which is about what you need to eat. It's all pretty obvious, until you start to compare it to what you are eating in general. Then you realize that most of this country has a long way to go to get to healthy eating habits.

Links and Friends

Emerald City Comicon gets a little press. It's a great show, I will be attending again this year. Looking forward to meeting Brian Wood.

BIG updates from the former Henchman Publishing, now Do Gooder Press, LLC. In short, PS238 is going monthly, Nodwick is going to back-ups, and PS238 is also coming to the web. Go read the entry for full info, but I'm wishing Aaron Williams lots of luck on this one, and will try to keep mentioning updates as they come. I firmly believe that PS238 is the best superhero book out there right now, and perhaps the best comic out of all that I read.

Another use for TiVo (remember, if you get one, please put tiktok at eskimo dot com in as your referrer and maybe Eric and I will eventually get an upgrade), listening to podcasts about Dorothy. That's right, I put the podcast up on the TiVo and listened to it. No special software required, even.

And lastly, if you have any good thoughts or vibes or even prayers to send, please send them to my friend Leah Adezio. She's in the hospital. Leah was my roommate at the 2000 San Diego Comicon, and she's a big reason I had so much fun. In the following image, Leah is in the upper left (the other folks are John Coates, Nick Cardy, and myself).

Linkdump

I'm sure you are all getting bored of Aquaman and TiVo... so here's some links.

The Examiner looks at Spider-Man and the recent events of Civil War.

Boing Boing looks at Death Note, which I've been reading from the library.

I should make an Aquaman version of this t-shirt.

The cover to Dorothy #7 has been posted. Go look. Me want.

Aaron Williams talks about the Doctor Who spin-offs. I enjoyed Torchwood, although I wouldn't let kids see it (I'm a prude that way) and I adored Sarah Jane Adventures and can hardly wait to see more. But I understand people who don't like either.

DI covers Galloping Gertie. If you grew up in the Puget Sound area, chances are good that your school district had an old film of the fall of the bridge which got played repeatedly in forward and reverse.

Just what is an oaf, anyway?

UFO over Chicago.

Library locks up when lazy parents send their kids there as free daycare, causing endless disruptions and danger to the staff. Be sure to read the library's statement to understand just how long they've put up with the problem.

Voting Machine Certifier de-certified after they were caught certifying insecure machines.

Bloggity-Blog-Blog-Blog's Best Comics of 2006

Usually this time of year I do a long and complicated retrospective of the comics I read over the last year, giving my readers a list of my favorites from the past year. Now... I'm not sure that anyone gives a flying fish about what I think anyway... and add in that I'm tired and not in the mood to write about good comics, and I begin to wonder if the end-of-the-year wrap up is worth doing. Still, tradition is tradition. I just won't make it as complicated as in the past. I'm going to flip through a list of comic books that came out in 2006 and come up with some that I remember well enough and enjoyed. I don't think I actually did this last year, so there may be a bit of crossing back into 2005, but I'll try to keep it mostly 2006.

• The "Most Ambitious Project" award I'm giving to 52, which somehow managed to stay on time for 34 weeks, and managed to be fairly entertaining as well.
• The "Best Book I Almost Missed" award goes to DMZ. I bought the first issue, but somehow missed future issues... until Brian Wood sent me the first collection and several of the single issues after it. I read the books, enjoyed them, and it's now on my pull list.
• "Favorite Manga" award goes to Hikaru No Go. This storyline is the only reason I subscribed to Shonen Jump, and I'm also buying the collections as they come out. There is nothing at all like this story in American comics, and there really ought to be!
• "Best Collection" hands down goes to the Castle Waiting Hardcover, which was beautiful, comprehensive, and upgradable. Anyone who hasn't tried this series should pick up this hardcover for a reasonably priced introduction to a book with great art and a lovely meandering story.
• Honorable Mention: Adventures In Oz. If I was as big an Oz fan as I am a Castle Waiting fan, this might have gone the other way around.
• "Best Superhero Team" goes to the Justice Society... but only because they brought back Ma Hunkel. And the book rocks as long as she's there. Period.
• The "I Wish I Was Still On Their Comp List" goes to Boom Studios! who probably took me off the list due to my slowness in posting reviews. However, all their zombie books were surprisingly good, as was Hero Squared, Planetary Brigrade, and, yes, even Jeremiah Harm. If you haven't checked out their books, give 'em a shot. I'm partial to the superhero books, but the whole line I sampled was excellent.
• The "Delays Just About Killed Me" award goes to Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis, which was an excellent revamp that had me incredibly excited... but then the delays started and my heart just about broke with each new delay announcement. To finish the job was the announcement that Kurt was leaving the book after only a scant handful of issues. Although he's leaving the book in Tad Williams' capable hands, it still made for a bittersweet year of Aquaman.
• "Best New Character" introduced in a superhero book this year would be Soranik Natu, the unwilling Green Lantern from Korugar. Ok, so she technically first appeared last year, but I didn't do any awards last year and she hadn't developed into such a cool character yet.
• The "I Really Wish It Came Out More Often" is a tie between Dorothy and Age of Bronze. Both are excellent books put out by people who care deeply about the subject matter. Both books show the love, sheer joy, and heart the creators put into them. And both are worth reading just for that. And both books I wish could come out more often, but I do understand why they don't.
• "Strongest Rebirth" award goes to Abadazad, which returned in a partly prose form that works really well for the series. I can honestly say I'm very much looking forward to future volumes.
• The "Still Going Strong" award goes to AiT/Planet Lar, who put out a number of great books this year, including Shatter, Continuity, Rock Bottom, and my personal favorite of the bunch, Seven Sons.
• The "It Will Be Missed" award is owned by Solo, which was a great idea that I thought was well executed and definitely well received... but apparently the sales couldn't justify it and it was canceled.

Other books that deserve mention but may not get individual awards include Justice League Unlimited, Birds of Prey, Noble Causes, PS238, Usagi Yojimbo, Local, Powers, Nodwick, Justice, True Story Swear to God, Mouse Guard, Action Philosophers, and Tony Loco.

Next up, later tonight: The year's best book. I'll post it after I've had dinner but before the New Year hits Seattle.