The Comic Critic Reviews Aeon Flux

I’m behind the eight ball this week as I finish off a deadline. But I don’t want to leave you hanging with nothing, so I’m digging into the archives to bring you my review of Aeon Flux.

There are many obvious movie genres: horror, comedy, action, drama, etc. And naturally you are aware that there are movies that mix genres: romance-comedy, horror-comedy, etc. You are even aware of the genres that have developed specific names: silent, grindhouse, exploitation, etc. But then there are those film genres whose names have yet to be formalized. Aeon Flux falls completely into a category I’m calling Sexy-Violent-Babe.

Sexy-Violent-Babe movies always have a beautiful female lead, usually featured on the movie poster wearing skintight clothing, often in an exotic pose. Her strong presence, usually featured in a slightly futuristic and or fantasy setting, is augmented with weaponry, often as exotic as her poses, along with a high tendency to use them. On top of everything she is smart, and it is her wiles, along with her graceful strength, that wins the day against “the man.” The man can take as many forms as her weaponry as long it is linked to a visage of female oppression, of which there is an endless selection. The description, Sexy-Violent-Babe, might be a bit wordy. With all the leather, straps, spandex, skin and definite promise of violence,Dominatrix has a far more wonderful simplicity to it. Too bad the term Dominatrix doesn’t lend itself to a PG-13 rating, so I’ll settle for Sexy-Violent-Babe.

Now that I’ve defined this genre for you, I’m betting that you can easily think of a number of movies that fit this description. I know I have a list that ranges from poorly done schlock to international blockbusters. Here’s a few I can name just off the top of my head:

Aeon Flux
BloodRayne
Catwoman
Resident Evil
Ultraviolet
Underworld

Geeks of Doom Feature Metropolis T-shirt

Geeks of Doom is a great blog to which I subscribe. I like the emails they send out each day called "Geeks of Doom Invade Your eMail!" They keep me up to date on all sorts of cool stuff, including very geek-trendy t-shirt designs. I sent them an email yesterday showing them the Metropolis Bar & Grill design I drew up. They were very interested in the fact that my pre-orders allowed me to order sizes above 2XL as it is a complaint they often hear. I'm completely blown away that they decided to feature my shirt today in their Geek Gear. If your a geek like me, and enjoy seeing something fun and new every day, then I can't recommend their site enough.


Oh, if you do pre-order, I'm throwing in free shipping. So the shirts are only $20. Sizes over 2XL are just a little more. It's not so much the cost of printing, it's the cost of the cloth increases with the larger sizes. That might be why aren't carried very often. As a sole-proprietorship, every pre-order alleviates the financial burden or the press run. So, thank you for your pre-order. You can order a shirt here.

The Return of Stickman #1350

I wanted to do a strip that would make sense to the long-term readers of The Return of Stickman, but would be weirdly funny to those just tuning in. Stickman's holiday adventures can be found in the archives.

The Return of Stickman #1349

This strip is a response to the single fan who asked me why I've not done anything related to the occupy movement. I'm not sure if it will make him happy.

I know I've not been posting up strips as regularly as I should. Blame real work on that. To make up for it, here is a cartoon I did for The CLAW's White Elephant Gift exchange. My wife's comment: Why isn't the elephant white? My answer: Meh!

The Return of Stickman #1347

Here is the news article which was the inspiration for this strip. Part of me wonders where this young gentleman will be a year from now - aside from jail.

The Return of Stickman #1346

This strip is a continuation of a strip I did on Nov. 10th 2011.

The Comic Critic Reviews A Very Harold & Kumar 2D Christmas

My wonderful wife wanted to take me to the movies on my birthday. She’d take me to see anything I wanted, but I certainly didn’t mean to test her loyalty by taking me to see A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas. Gullible, I truly held the hope that the magic of the first film would be recaptured; instead, I got something every bit as awful, if not worse, than the second film, Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay. (It was a crushing blow because it was such a disappointment.) That experience should have set my expectations lower. This one was filled with an homage to past Christmas films, crass toilet humor that left my shoulders aching from cringing, and a seemingly endless stable of obvious 3D effects constructed solely (and obviously) for the post-theater-release 3D TV market. This movie has me hoping that today’s 3D craze will follow the pitter-patter of past 3D fads and just fade way, taking this movie with it.

Here’s an odd side story: As we stepped out of our car in the theater’s parking lot, my foot came down on a baggie. I picked it up to find that it contained a bud of weed. I put it into my pocket because I was going in to watch a movie that heavily featured pot smoking and promptly forgot all about it. During the movie, a familiar aroma kept hitting me at odd times. It was confusing because, regardless of how interesting pot smoke may be, I knew 3D couldn’t broadcast a smell. Certainly the film wasn’t good enough to bring back old memories. Then I remembered the bag in my pocket and mentally let out a long, “Oh!” When we left the theater, I left the baggy behind—on the floor. I have not indulged in years; besides, there’s no way I’d ever smoke something that I found in a parking lot. Why did I leave it behind instead of tossing it away? I wanted the next person to sit there to undergo an unexpected odorama experience. Maybe it would make sitting through the movie a little bit more pleasant for them than it was for me.