The Comic Critic Reviews Pirates of the Carribean: Curse of the Black Pearl, and the Tacoma Zombpocalpse

One summer my cousins went to Disneyland. I remember them telling my siblings and me about all the rides. I got very excited that there was a ride called “Pirates of the Caribbean.” My father was a huge Errol Flynn fan, and he introduced me to pirate movies via “Captain Blood.” Together, we spent countless hours watching sea battles and peg-legged pirates swinging cutlasses. So when Deborah, Diane, Dina, and Denise described this ride with animatronic (freakin’ robots) pirates, my overactive mind feasted on the imagery for months. In fact, I can’t remember any other details of their trip. I think their parents were there—maybe. Anyway, when I heard that Disney had turned the ride into a movie, that little part of my brain that got ridiculously hyper as a kid got all charged up again. I was one of the first to get a ticket to that ride, erm, movie, and I loved every minute of it.

And I know several of you are wondering how I did at the Tacoma Zombpocalypse. The answer: Fantastic. Not only was this great one day show, but it was their first show, and it has topped my sales for a one day show this year. Here is a link to a group page on flickr so you can see all the fun. Kudos to my friend, Joe Manfredini, for helping me out at my table.

The Comic Critic Reviews John Carter

I was quite the reader when I was a kid. So was my oldest brother Randy. Nearly all the books I read were ones he left lying around, so his tastes became my tastes—classic mysteries, sci-fi, and fantasy. Sir Author Conan Doyle, H.G. Wells, and Edgar Rice Burroughs were staples in his library. Surrounded by television and movies retelling the same stories, my little mind had a hard time putting into perspective that these writers from so long ago dreamed up stories with such foresight, imagination and wonder. But I immediately grasped the concept of that their work was valued and inspiring. As years went by, I saw their work influencing storytellers who followed them. But what I did not see was Tharks. I’ve been waiting for years to see Tharks on the big screen. And after such a long wait, I was rewarded with Tharks being served up in3 D.When it came time to draw this review of John Carter, my thoughts were less on critiquing the story arc and more on my old feelings about Burroughs, so I dropped my resistance and drew a fanboy review.

You can see more of Joe on my Facebook Channel.

The Comic Critic Reviews Birthday Girl

This movie, Birthday Girl, haunts me. When I drew this review in ’07, I found it a decent thriller and gave it a seven. Yet, other movies I’ve rated with a seven don’t have their scenes popping into my head at odd times. I’m thinking I might have been wrong, and this film deserves an eight. But giving it a new rating creates logistical problems for me. It’s currently featured in my book, “The Comic Critic Presents Seldom Seen Films.” When my book goes into a second edition, should I alter the rating? Should I alter the rating on my website? Should I alter my rating at all? Part of me wants to just forget the whole thing and leave the rating as it is. I’m wondering which part of me is struggling to bring further attention to this film, the movie reviewer or the guy who likes to tie knots.

The reason I did not post a new review is because this weekend was nuts. On Saturday I was a Moderator for a panel discussing Graphic Novels with Matthew Southworth (Stumptown), Megan Kelso (Girl Hero), Emi Lenox (Emitown), Brandon Jerwa (G.I. Joe) and Kim Thompson (Fantagraphics). We went for over three hours and it was well received. The event was put on by the SPGA/Seattle Chapter of the Graphic Artists Guild with sponsorship from Fantagraphics, Emerald City Comicon and the Seattle Chapter of the AIGA. There was a reception afterwards at Fantagraphics and I got to sign some of my books. But the day was not over. My next stop was Ray Weisgerber's (Emitown) birthday party.

Since I was already so far north I spent the night at Joe Manfredini's house. On Sunday I helped him with a photo shoot. We were in his studio taking pictures of one of his dogs for use on a greeting card. I finally made it home in time to have dinner with my wife.

Monday my father came over. We spent most of the day on Facebook. Here's his page, be his friend.He's bound and determine to learn all the ins and outs. It was great to spend time with my dad and all of my friends, but it left me with no time to draw a new strip. I will have one next Monday, I promise.

The Comic Critic will be at Jet City

On Saturday, September 24th 2011, The Jet City Comic Book Show is going to be held in Seattle at the Seattle Center Exhibition Hall located at 299 Mercer Street from 10am to 6pm. Tickets are only $8. If you pre-order your tickets you will receive a free Bomber Girl print by Matthew Clark. This will be the second year I’ll be attending the show. You can find me in the Artist’s Alley at table AA25.

I will be doing drawing/signing for those who buy my book. Almost everyone who subscribes to this blog knows what my book’s about. But, if you don’t, then check out this video.

It’s one in a series of reviews that tag into my book, “The Comic Critic Presents Seldom Seen Films.”

Special thanks to Adam the Alien for producing this and the other movie review videos for me, to Joe Izenman who created my jingle, and of course my good friend Joe Manfredini whose been my right hand man at so many conventions.

The Return of Stickman #1284

I want to thank John Markuson for sending me this news article. The strip practically wrote itself this morning. I also want to thank Adam J. Manley for his fine editing job on the latest video of me and Joe Manfredini talking about movies.

The Comic Critic Review Lords of War, and the Bellingham Comic Con

I’m sure you have seen an animated flip-book, one with a stack of images you quickly flip through that change from page to page, the end result being a short animation. I want you to keep that image in your mind for a moment. The opening credits for Lord of War almost appear as a tacked-on social message that should be at the end of the movie. But from the opening credits onward, there is a series of social messages stacked together, each saying nearly the same thing, all telling the same story. I don’t need to tell you what the story is because you see it daily in the news. Lord of War is just like a flipbook. Its real message is how everything is black and white on each page; the only illusion is the blur as its pages are flipped.

The Bellingham Comic Con
My friend Joe Manfredini helped me man my table at the Bellingham Comic Con this last Saturday. This is the second year for the show. Last year's show was such a success that the promoters located a larger venue this year, and again they sold out. I saw some friends there such a John Lustig who does Last Kiss and Drew Pocza who does Pokeweed. A number of my fans came out to see me to get signed copies of the books and I also met several new fans. I did far better at this show than I anticipated. Perhaps I'm getting better at marketing myself, but I really do think it is thanks to the promoters and their efforts. I'm looking forward to participating next year.



Thank for the fun time!