I've been enjoyingMatt Fraction's 'Pop Life' column over at Comic Book Resources. He's part of a crazed advertising group, appears to be on the edge of sanity, and is trying to get into comics. Pretty funny, if occasionally incoherent, and has gotten better even in the short time its been written. Here's the archive of all the columns (I linked to the first one).
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11:26:01 AM,
Friday 22 February 2002
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I've been getting more interested in skepticism recently, perhaps as a long-held-back reaction to a lot of the kids I met in Annapolis with the supreme faith in aura's, fate, and psychic powers. As such, I've been enjoying tremendously James Randi's site, which has weekly commentary on events in skepticism. Randi might be a little too strident at times for me to unequivocally recommend him to all, but his debunking is second to none, and he seems to have a lot of fun with it. He comes off as a lovable curmudgeon. Found through that site is a marvelous reference work, both cross-referenced in itself and to related material for all your skeptical needs, The Skeptics Dictionary. Good stuff.
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(15)
04:29:51 AM,
Friday 22 February 2002
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A cogent interview with the architects of the current case against the Sonny Bono Copyright Extenstion Act, which the Supreme Court has agreed to hear. This is big, big stuff. Many plays, opera's, movies and music would come into the public domain if this act (which extended the copyright in 1998 to 95 years on work-for hire and 70 years after the author died on original works). Think about it, Mickey Mouse in the public domain. It's interesting, because it will be a true test of the so-called 'Free Market'. Will Disney be able to maintain it's hold on Mickey Mouse now that it will have to _work_ for that hold as opposed to simply getting a free pass? The mind boggles.
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(4)
02:29:03 AM,
Friday 22 February 2002
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A very cool article on the current state of Science Fiction. The author took a years worth of Asimov's magazine from 2000 and looks at a disturbing trend in sf, that of not being about how technology will affect the future, but rather about fear of death and isolation, and a rosy view of the past. Good read, and it makes it clearer that Science Fiction is in 'Change or Die' mode. Hopefully some people will heed the warning signs.
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(3)
10:04:04 PM,
Thursday 21 February 2002
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Return to Sender, it rules. Professional in the best sense of the word and utterly wonderful. It's so good it's depressing (for my lame behind-schedule-cartooning-ass, at least). Go read it.
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(28)
11:31:04 PM,
Monday 18 February 2002
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The Lord of the Rings: The Novelization by Alan Kevin J.M. Salvatore-Foster-Stevens.
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(15)
02:09:55 AM,
Monday 18 February 2002
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Ah well. Defeat is never pleasant, but I must admit it in this instance. I could probably finish it, but then I'd never want myself or anyone else to ever see it. Next time I'll start out in the right way. Next time.
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(4)
02:40:59 AM,
Sunday 17 February 2002
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Started: 6:05 pm EST after aborted cooperative attempt.
Currently: 10:45pm EST with six pages completed.
Time left: 19 hours 20 minutes.
Kickin' ass!
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10:46:50 PM,
Saturday 16 February 2002
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Moss: In case we don't chat tonight, just a reminder that we're meeting at 11:00am PST/2:00pm EST tomorrow to begin Comic Exhaustion.
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(2)
09:48:24 PM,
Friday 15 February 2002
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I have changed my aim screen name. I am now: Tlon Orbis
Yes, it's a mangled Borges reference, it was late and I was tired of saying, "I'm Remi" and people saying, "I know".
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(8)
02:08:22 AM,
Friday 15 February 2002
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There's this thing on figure skating on TV. Man, there's NOTHING I hate more than figure skating. Well, I guess Kenny G. And injustice. But THEN figure skating. -Erik Dempsey who sometimes sounds a bit more like The Tick than he should.
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(4)
12:36:25 AM,
Friday 15 February 2002
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Chris Staros Reports '96 and '97 are still chock-full of great comic reads, despite their age. It's surprising how much of this stuff is being reprinted in fuller form (notably Akira and Lone Wolf & Cub), or still in print at all. A great starting point if you are interested in being a casual reader of excellent graphic fiction, and if you're new to comics you can get them FREE from Mars Imports (click the link for information), just be sure to buy something from them so they don't go out of business.
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11:21:43 PM,
Thursday 14 February 2002
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I passed the reading test at Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic and can now read both Theology/Religion texts and Philosophy for them. In addition, I also learned how to use the digital recording booths today. All that and a bunch of drawing.
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(10)
03:39:38 PM,
Tuesday 12 February 2002
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Those for whom Mao is not freeform enough, Dvorak, the Card Game takes it to a whole new level. [via boingboing]
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12:31:12 PM,
Tuesday 12 February 2002
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A surprisingly balanced list of SF and Fantasy that every Socialist should read. I haven't read much of this stuff, but it seems like a good starting point from which to explore SF from a different direction than my current 'pick and author and start piling up books' method.
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(9)
02:21:22 AM,
Tuesday 12 February 2002
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Okay, so Tim Broderick of Odd Jobs just got picked up by the pay-site Modern Tales. He had been talking about trying together a group of folks and putting a good chunk of their archives behind a firewall, leaving certain sections (in Tim's case, the first eight pages of his current story, and all of his 'Lost Child' story) open as 'teasers'. Now, I know that this sort of thing doesn't usually work, but Modern Tales has a _ton_ of quality creators on it, and it's $20 for a year if you sign up right now.
So here's my question: Is this something to work towards? It seems like an interesting idea, but I don't create constently enough. Would being on a smaller site, with a more focused community bent on trying to making something approaching some money, be enough to get me off my duff?
Another point. I'm really enjoying working with other folks on my comics. Anyone interested in writing/co-writing a strip for this thing and making a proposal to this site?
So conflicted.
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(5)
06:51:46 PM,
Monday 11 February 2002
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For those who don't read Moss's blog, we did a trial-run on making a comic together today. The resulting 3-hour comic is here.
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01:07:00 AM,
Sunday 10 February 2002
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I just saw Rollerball. It's . . . possibly the worst movie I've ever seen. It is not content to just be mediocre, but it stretches the limits of filmmaking bad to new heights. First of all: the corporate world from the original is replaced with a Roller-deby-sport-obsessed SouthEast Asia. The reason seems to be that the creators thought it would be too implausible to believe a story in which Corporations controlled all aspects of American life. Secondly, the big bad guy's big plan is to make Rollerball more popular (through bloodshed, of course) in order to get an AMERICAN CABLE TV CONTRACT! Gotta set your sights high, I guess. Other highlights include LL Cool J signing his death warrant in the first five minutes of the movie ("I miss my kids, but if I do this for another year, I'll have enough to retire") and the main character incites a proletariat revolution at the end of the movie. Occasionally the main character (Played by the jock guy from American Pie and Election, do I see a typecast forming?) asks something along the lines of, "What's going on?" and a character will turn around and say, "Well . . ." That's how pretty much the entire plot of the movie is explained. The real kicker is that there's not that much actual Rollerball in the movie, and what there is, isn't half as interesting as the excellent sport portrayed in the original. Inferior in every way to the terribly flawed original, this is a Mabel movie of today. Our very own film screaming for an MST3k revival all it's own.
He's a Libertarian Superman, he's the instigator of a proletarian revolution, they fight crime!
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(2)
04:05:10 PM,
Saturday 9 February 2002
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Talking Heads reunite for two songs at their induction to the Rock N' Roll Hall of Fame! (second entry)
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02:14:29 AM,
Saturday 9 February 2002
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And now, to appeal to your purient interests, I give you Porn with the people removed. What a dreary world.
via metafilter, of course
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(4)
12:31:21 AM,
Saturday 9 February 2002
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There's this children's book in the comic store called The Soap Lady. It's by a woman called Renee French, and it's about . . . a lady made of soap. I only looked at the first few pages but it showed the Soap Lady coming out of the ocean. It was one of the most terrifyin things I had ever seen. The Soap Lady has an uneven, bulbous body and spindly arms, but her head is the kicker. It looks vaguely like a skull with the jaw missing, but as poorly molded by a child. All in this beautiful greyscale pointillized drawing style. Surely a children's book from hell.
I want it.
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(20)
09:48:39 PM,
Friday 8 February 2002
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Liz picked up the new Transmetropolitan collection today. It's called Gouge Away and it's probably the sharpest the series has ever been. Funny as hell, disturbing, and, finally, triumphant. I can't encourage folks enough to go out and try the series today. (Start with Back on the Street and go from there)
"Don't worry! It's a Medical Grade truncheon! Sterile Violence!"
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07:09:16 PM,
Friday 8 February 2002
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Totally Coincendental.
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(2)
05:51:06 PM,
Friday 8 February 2002
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All my good ideas come to me in the bathtub. I'm a modern Archimedes.
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(9)
01:21:39 PM,
Friday 8 February 2002
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Two more pages in my Jam with Russ Williams of Ko Fight Club. W00t!
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08:26:23 PM,
Wednesday 6 February 2002
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Had an interesting world-building, rules-clarifying convesation with Andrew on a possible RPG thingee. Anyone got an interesting idea for a dice-based resolution system? I'm stuck with something that resembles the White Wolf system (roll number of dice in skill and anything above a certain number is a success, number of successes measures _how_ successful you are) but with six siders at the moment.
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03:01:09 PM,
Tuesday 5 February 2002
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Cory Doctorow of BoingBoing writes an interesting rant on 'Too Much Time on His Hands.' It ends up being a cry for more Fair Use rights, but it starts out well enough.
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05:08:30 PM,
Monday 4 February 2002
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AnotherJohnny Boy illo. Not shaded, yet, but hey, the hard part is done. It's strange that I'm enjoying this more than doing my own comic. Maybe that whole master/slave thing has something to it . . . ::thinks of Martin in a 'Master' position:: Brrrrr.
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(3)
01:56:59 AM,
Monday 4 February 2002
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I just watched the end of the Superbowl on ESPN's text scroll. It was weirdly exciting to watch the outcome of the game sway back and forth, reported simply in numbers.
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10:11:44 PM,
Sunday 3 February 2002
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New Johnny Boy Illustration.
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02:52:45 AM,
Sunday 3 February 2002
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I've beenAIM referenced twice today. I need to get out more.
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04:31:27 PM,
Saturday 2 February 2002
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AGH! Forgot to announce: Comics Exhaustion has been moved to February 16th-17th. REPEAT: Comic Exhaustion has been moved back a week.
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03:48:46 PM,
Thursday 31 January 2002
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I don't believe in Rock. I believe in the new musical theater.
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(13)
12:34:43 AM,
Thursday 31 January 2002
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A neat animation site. The reference section is especially interesting, featuring notes on a lecture by a head animator at Disney and a bunch of character studies by animation master Gene Keane (also Disney, and the son of Family Circus's Bill Keane). A little difficult to navigate, but worth the trouble.
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(8)
03:25:11 PM,
Wednesday 30 January 2002
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Comics scribe Dwayne McDuffie explains why shared continuity in comics is a bad thing and how "The last five minutes of St. Elsewhere is the only television show, ever. Everything else is a daydream."
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(4)
10:27:36 AM,
Wednesday 30 January 2002
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Plikt
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(7)
04:22:04 PM,
Monday 28 January 2002
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