23rd Nov2012

Top Ten List – Small Business Saturday for Geeks Part 1

by Jeremy

 

Small Business Saturday Badge

If it wasn’t obvious, Small Business Saturday is a day dedicated shopping at small (and most often local) stores. This is opposed to Black Friday, which is usually to the advantage of the big-box and chain stores that give you ridiculous deals, if onlyyou will stand in line for hours and then trample your fellow-man, when it is time. Don’t get me wrong, I love the “Hunger Games” inspired aspects of it all. Full-contact consumerism, if you will. Anyway, Small Business Saturday is your chance to give some money to people you actually may like, and since you are all set on trading money for goods, you might as well give it to these people. Sure American Express started the idea, but it’s probably one of the less evil things they’ve done.

I’ve put together a list of some places that I plan on going to, or go to on a regular basis. I’ve also given some examples in the form of the actual business (obviously, they’re mostly local to me).

1. Local Comic Book Shop – Of course, how would this not be number one on my list. I go there about once a week, but with the holidays coming up, go see if you can get a bulk deal by buying 10 copies of Batman: Year One (by Frank Miller) to give out. That way you can stop looking down at everyone for not having read it yet.

My Local Picks: Alter Ego, Daydreams Comics

2. Locally Owned Movie Theater - This is one that you may not be lucky enough to have. I don’t live in a huge metropolitan area, but we still have an independently owned movie theater. Now, that means that they don’t carry movies during their first run. They do however, offer much cheaper prices, and you can add your own butter on your popcorn! It means they might be able to carry some movies that don’t get national releases. Sometimes, the owner/manager will come down before a movie and introduce the film, or have drawings for free stuff. If you have one of these, go buy some gift certificates, maybe the person you give it to will take you with them.

My Local Pick - Collins Road Theatres

3. Local Tabletop Gaming Store - I wasn’t always a cool, well-adjusted, beacon of awesomeness. And I’m still not. When I game, I do most of it in a digital manner, some on the PC, and some on a platform (mostly Xbox 360). There was a time (mostly the 90′s) where the only digital gaming I did, was in the rare form of playing Dungeons & Dragons, or Shadowrun on a local dial-up BBS (if any of those words are foreign to you, just look them up on Wikipedia, they’re from the dark ages of the internet). My preferred method of gaming, was tabletop. Yes, dice: D4′s and D20′s, and everything in between. Also, we used our imagination for a lot of things. I know I sound like a grumpy old man when I say things like that, but still. There were places you would go to buy the new rule books, or the expansion packs, females were a strange and rare commodity, and you would hang out, and probably argue with, the guy who worked behind the counter. And he was kind of a prick, and definitely a know-it-all. And you may or may not have turned in to him.

My Local Pick - BattleZone Games

4. Local Bakery/Chocolatiers - Sure, the packaged baked goods that were made a year ago, and will last for a millennia are cheap and easy. How about trying something that’s like home-made, only you don’t have to do any of the work? If you get tired of bringing bags of Cheetos’ to your weekend LAN parties, bring a batch of fudge instead. Trust me, your fellow gamers will thank you, and the sugar buzz is much more intense!

[Editor's Note - With the current situation at Hostess, shopping locally for your sugar and snack needs keeps you from having to take a side in the unions versus corporations argument]

My Local Picks – Jules Bakery, The Chocolate Shop

5. A Local Photography – Here’s an interesting one. Most photographers (unless they work for Sears, or one of those creepy kid’s places in the mall) are most likely a small and local business. Even if you don’t need portraits of you and your brood for the holidays, there are often lots of other things you can use them for. Wedding pictures, business advertisement and marketing solutions, even for your band’s next album cover.

My Local Picks – mGphotography, Bill Stevens Photography

This is just Part 1, Part 2 is here. Feel free to post comments or links about your favorite local and small businesses tomorrow.

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22nd Aug2012

Comic Book Review: The Great Unknown #1

by Jeremy

banner for Small Batch Comics

If you follow along here, or on one of the social media sites I’m on, you will know that in addition to covering the mainstream, I also like new and independent media. When I find something new that I think is interesting, I turn around and introduce it to my readers, because that’s what I do. This short comic anthology from Small Batch Comics is a great example of this. As they state in their introduction from Jonathan Duran, the note from the editor Hardstein, and the guest column from Chris Roberson (yes this Chris Roberson of Monkey Brain Comics) the comic book industry is following the trend of other art mediums with regards to creator-centric rights, methods of delivery and payment. Roberson even goes on to explain the Creator’s Bill of Rights (originally drafted in 1988 by Scott McCloud).

Small Batch Comics is a home for first time comic book writers and artists, and this collection of seven short comics, showcases the pros and inevitable cons that go with that refreshing kind of naïvety and freedom.

The topics of the stories run the full spectrum with sci-fi, space adventure, suspense, horror, absurdism and fantasy. The styles of art do as well, from the traditional comic book fare in Engine Whispers (art by Alex Dunn, story by Dylan Faraday) to monochrome in GODDAMNIT! (art and story by Hardstein), with strange and witty fake advertisements (by Tudor Morris) interspersed.

My only criticism is the kind of stuff that I would expect from new creators. If this were in a mainstream comic house, a good story might be rejected because of less than perfect art, or good art ignored because a story needed a little more editing. I’m also going to pick on one story in particular, because it is my favorite in this collection, and I think the art and writing are wonderful and it’s one of my favorite types of stories. In Darren Hupke and Vincent Tang’s A 12 Minute Revolution in Just Reading, the outline font clashes strangely with the black and white art of the comic. As I said, I’m picking a bit, but only because I’m so impressed with the rest of the comics quality (besides, if I liked everything, how much fun would that be?).

Small Batch Comics’ The Great Unknown #1 is available now for free, online here, and will be available in physical form at a later date. You should definitely give them a chance, the stories are fun, strange, and worth your time and effort. If you like them, you should share them with a friend, like I’m doing with all of you.

If you liked these indie comics, or know of some others that I should review, leave a comment or get a hold of me through Facebook, Twitter and now Google+.


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14th Jul2012

Neil Gaiman To Write Sandman Prequel for Vertigo Comics

by Jeremy

Neil Gaiman's Sandman

Among all the great stuff being announced at San Diego Comic Con 2012, my favorite so far is the fact that author, Neil Gaiman (Sandman, Star Dust, Coraline, Anansi Boys) is returning to the character that made him popular (at least in the comic book world). At the Vertigo panel he announced that after 25 years, a new mini series about the Lord of Dreams would be available November of 2013. The prequel will tell the story of what Morpheus was doing before being captured in the first issue of Sandman.

Here’s the video where Gaiman announced the project:

When I watched that video, I was on the edge of my seat. I am a huge fan of the Sandman series, and I’m starting to get caught up on Gaiman’s novels as well. He brings the same kind of detail and poetry to his prose work that he does in the dialog of his comic books. He also mentioned that his artist would be J.H. Williams III, who is now co-authoring and drawing Batwoman (the Vol. 1 collection: Hydrology was on the New York Times best seller graphic novels list). Williams’ art is THE reason I originally started buying the Batwoman books, so I see this partnership as an All-Star lineup.

If you’re not familiar with the Sandman series (from Wikipedia):

“The Sandman’s main character is Dream, the Lord of Dreams (also known, to various characters throughout the series as Morpheus, Oneiros,…) who is essentially the anthropomorphic personification of dreams. At the start of the series, Morpheus is captured by an occult ritual and held prisoner for 70 years. Morpheus escapes in the modern day and, after avenging himself upon his captors, sets about rebuilding his kingdom, which has fallen into disrepair in his absence. Gaiman himself has summarized the plot of the series (in the foreword to Endless Nights) as ‘The Lord of Dreams learns that one must change or die, and makes his decision.’ “

I know some people will say that DC/Vertigo is just returning to an old property to make money like they did with Before Watchmen. Well, they might be right. The Before Watchmen books are top-selling, and the issues I have collected have been well made. On the other hand, Neil Gaiman has made plenty of money, and seems like the kind of artist who doesn’t have to return to a character unless he has a new story to tell.

If you would like to get familiar the Sandman series you can pick up the paperback collection: Sandman Slipcase Set. It comes out in November and gives you almost a whole year to read up before the new books come out. You should check out J.H. Williams Batwoman as well. You can go with the previously mentioned first New 52 Volume:Batwoman Vol. 1: Hydrology (The New 52), or go with the first collection of Batwoman in Detective Comics: Batwoman: Elegy, when she was written by Greg Rucka (J.H. Williams III is still the artist). This is the one I recommend, it’s what got me hooked.

Can you wait a whole year? More than a year, actually. I guess I’ll have to reread all my Sandman and Endless books while I wait for Gaiman’s next classic.

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03rd Jul2012

6 Things To Do When Your Local Comic Book Shop Is Closed (4th of July Edition)

by Jeremy

Superman in front of an American Flag

 

Tomorrow is the Fourth of July and I am just as patriotic as the next geek, but I am still going to miss my new books that come out that day. However, the employees of your Local Comic Shop deserve to celebrate and have a day off too. So, in common geek blog fashion, I have put together a short list of alternative (and possibly neurotic) things to do this Wednesday:

1. Show up at your Local Comic Shop anyway. Hang out in the parking lot, randomly running up to a glass window or door and pressing your face against it, just to make sure that there’s no one in there that could get you your new comic books.

2. Stay inside in your air conditioning. Where I live, it has been around 100 degrees (F) for the past few days, and it looks like it will continue to be that way. Since I also do not have to work, by not going out to pick up my new comic books, I have no real reason to leave the house until the sun goes down. At which point the temperature should be down to a mild 90 degrees (joy).

3. Go outside, enjoy a BBQ with friends or family. Do the opposite of #3 (how long has it been since you’ve seen the sun, really). The Fourth of July is a great opportunity to catch up with friends and family. Or, to sweat off a couple of pounds while you stand around a grill in the previously mentioned 100 degree weather. I’m sure your successful cousin with the convertible and the hair plugs would LOVE to hear about how you think Batman and Catwoman are “really going to make it work this time”.

4. Reorganize your comic book collection. Be warned, every time I set out on such an undertaking I find it usually takes more hours than I had planned. Like, 12 more hours than I had planned.

5. Check out your favorite blogs and websites where people who have gotten their comic books on time discuss them. Let your mouse arrow hover over *SPOILER* links, until you calm down and just realize you only have to wait until the next day to get your own.

6. Blow things up. With fireworks I mean….yes…fireworks.

Notice I didn’t suggest a couple of things, like beating your head against a brick wall until they open up, or going to a chain book store to spend your hard-earned money on their sparse offerings.

Happy Fourth of July Everyone!

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19th Jun2012

10 Things To Know About DC Comics Zero Month

by Jeremy

DC Comics "New 52" Justice League

If you are a reader of DC Comic’s New 52 and you’ve been following along and slowly putting together which parts of previous comic book continuity still apply and which parts of have been thrown out (example: Batman still had 3 previous Robins, but now Bruce is younger, so how long they all worked with him is unknown), then you will be interested in “Zero Month”. When DC recently released their preview for the comics that would be coming out in September, they announced that all of the New 52 comics would be a #0 issue, that is, an origin issue.

In a couple of instances, new titles will be spun off of their #0 issue. In other cases, they’ve connected books to feature more details. I read through all the solicits for you and picked out what I thought was most interesting.

Here’s My “10 Things to Know About DC Comics #0 Month”

1. Four New Titles! Talon #0 will feature Calvin Rose, the only Talon to escape the Court of Owls. This ties into the current storyline running in the Batman Family comic books. It is written by Scott Snyder, who has been writing (very well!) the current volume of Batman books. I’m a fan of his, so I might be picking this one up. Phantom Stranger, Sword of Sorcery and Team 7 will also be new ongoing’s after their origin issues.

2. Shazam’s Origin! Justice League #0 will be the (former Captain Marvel) New Shazam’s origin story, as well as the origin of Pandora. She’s the purple hooded woman who ushered in the New 52 after Flashpoint.

3. Superman Begins! Action Comics #0 will be Grant Morrison’s story of Clark Kent’s early days in Metropolis.

4. Krypton’s Back Story! Superman #0 is the story of how Jor-El (Superman’s dad…the one who sent him to Earth as a baby in a rocket ship) learned of Krypton’s impending destruction. Both of those books are straying away from just retelling Superman’s origin for the 100th time (not really 100, but still).

5. Building Batman Inc! Batman Inc. #0 retells the story of how Batman recruited the major players for his “war” with Leviathan. I feel like we already read that…last year…in Batman Inc. Vol. 1. They must be planning on changing things if they feel they need to revisit that.

6. Batman Begins 52 Style! Batman #0 picks up with Bruce Wayne returning from his journeys and beginning his vigilante career. They’re going to reveal how he assembled his headquarters, his vehicles and his gadgets.

7. Bat-Geeks rejoice! Detective Comics #0 will be about young Bruce learning to master martial arts and introduce a villain.

8. Batman’s Origin! Batman: The Dark Knight #0 will be introducing us to the Wayne’s murderer, Joe Chill as Batman tries to figure out who murdered his parents.

9. Why is Jason Todd Alive Now?? Red Hood and the Outlaws #0 will be about how Jason Todd came back to life after being killed by the Joker. Hopefully we get something better than Superboy punching the walls of reality. Personally, I hope it is close to the Red Hood animated movie, it was a pretty well written story.

10. Cancelled Books! Okay, so the exclamation point isn’t needed here, but look on the bright side: If you are collecting Captain Atom, Resurrection Man or Voodoo, you will now have some extra month every month.

There, I did my job (I was a geek so you didn’t have to be) and sifted through over 52 solicits to bring you the good parts. Now do your part, tell me what you’re picking up from DC’s “Zero Month”. (If you want to look through the new previews yourself, head over to DC’s blog and find them)

[Edit 07/14/12]: I just found out that they are going to be collecting all the DC Issue Zero comics into one hardback book. You can pre order it here: DC Comics: The New 52 Zero (The New 52)

 

 

 

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10th Apr2012

Batman: Arkham Unhinged #1

by Jeremy

 

the cover to Batman Arkham Unhinged #1

Did you love Batman Arkham City? Did you blast through the storyline? Collect all the collectables? Unlock all the unlockables? If you just can’t get enough of the latest award-winning Batman video game, then you should probably pick up Batman: Arkham Unhinged. It’s a prequel to the video game, and goes into the roles of the heroes and villains. According to DC Comics the comic book is:

A prequel to the game created with the developer, Rocksteady, this first issue features content previously available only as a digital released and explores the Catwoman/Two-Face rivalry and how it leads them into the clutches of Hugo Strange.

I did love the game, I did like the story line. With so many Batman books out now (five), I’m not sure if I’m ready to add another one that was created with the company that also created the video game. DC already has a lot of competition for any of my extra money with so many great indie books being released. I feel like if they had some bigger names involved (Paul Dini, for instance… he did help with the video game story line right?) with the creation, this Batman comic book would distinguish itself from just another chance for the video game to get some extra exposure, and make some more money.

Unless I read an outstanding review somewhere, I’m probably going to pass on this one. If you decide you want to pick it up, and for some reason you don’t know where your local comic book shop is, just click on this: Batman: Arkham Unhinged #1 and let Amazon.com do the work.

Category : Batman, Comics
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27th Mar2012

Avengers vs. X-Men Begins with Issue #0

by Jeremy

Avengers vs. X-Men promo picture

As we mentioned in a previous article, Marvel is putting their two biggest (and most popular) teams head-to-head for this year’s crossover event. That’s right AvX: Cyclops vs. Captain America, Red Hulk vs. Colossus (who is also now the Juggernaut), Iron Man vs. Magneto, Wolverine vs…wait, which team will he choose? There are quite a few X-Men, including Beast and Storm, who have been a part of each team over the years.

Starting tomorrow with issue #0 (written by Brian Michael Bendis and Jason Aaron and art by Frank Cho), the two teams will be coming into conflict over the fact that the super destructive Phoenix Force is making its way back to Earth, but Marvel hasn’t let us know what exactly happens to pit the two super teams against each other. With the X-Men as popular as ever and the new Avenger’s movie just over a month away, it is easy to see why Marvel has chosen now to finally let their new most prominent super factions fight each other. It reminds me of the Civil War crossover, where there were two sides of heroes, both doing what they thought was right. Will this be played out the same way? When heroes fight each other, and neither side becomes the villain, it puts the reader in a fun and interesting position. Is that what the story tellers at Marvel are trying to do here again? Or, are they just trying to continue to cash in on all things “Avenger”?

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24th Mar2012

The Weekend Link Dump 03/24/12

by Jeremy

Ender's Chair

It was a long week for me, didn’t get in front of the computer a lot, but I did see a lot of interesting stuff going on with updates from Wondercon and upcoming movies (comic book and otherwise), SWTOR’s free weekend trial and more. If you have some time to kill, here’s what I found of interest this week:

  • AMC Theaters is running a marathon of the Marvel Comics movie universe; leading up to, and finishing with the new Avengers Movie.
  • ScreenRant.com has a photo of the what is purported to be the movie poster for the sequel to X-Men Origins: Wolverine, The Wolverine.
  • Orson Scott Card’s classic science fiction novel is being turned into a movie. That movie, Ender’s Game, has a blog.
  • More movie news, after Michael Bay’s big announcement about changes to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle origin, original creator Kevin Eastman chimes in as well.
  • A spoilerific interview with Scott Snyder about Batman #7.
  • Star Wars: The Old Republic is offering a free trial this weekend. If you haven’t checked it out yet, you should. The free trial goes until Monday morning. There goes your weekend.
  • “Researchers have proposed building a nuclear clock that would lose only one-tenth of a second over 14 billion years, the current age of the universe. It would be 100 times more accurate than current atomic clocks…”
  • A cool look at the way music is used in Mass Effect 3. Scroll down and look at the comments, Bioware’s Audio Lead gives his opinion!
  • Just because we’re geeks doesn’t mean we have to live up to the old stereotype about our fashion tendencies. Lifehacker.com helps out.
  • Finally, for all the info on last weekend’s Wondercon, ComicBookResources.com has you covered.
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12th Mar2012

What You Shouldn’t Miss This Week 03/12/12

by Jeremy

Super Jail image

Not an amazing week at theaters, but some new DVD releases should keep us occupied, Marvel continues to focus on the upcoming Avenger movie, and of course we keep an eye on SXSWi in Texas this week: The Adventures of Tin Tin, Super Jail season 2 and Avengers Assemble #2. How could we forget, Wednesday is Pi Day, we show you where you can find fun stuff to celebrate a very geeky holiday.

All week in Austin, Texas top innovators and up and comers in the worlds of music, film, technology and even fashion are meeting and discussing (and at times coming up with) the “Next Big Thing” in their fields. SXSW Interactive is of special interest to us, because of how it relates to the future of the technology industry: crowd sourcing, social media, phone/tablet apps, etc. If you aren’t lucky enough to be there, they have a great link that let’s you keep an eye on the action SXSW Accelerate.

The Adventures of Tintin comes out on DVD on March 13th. The visually stunning family movie from Paramount Pictures and director Steven Spielberg comes home. I always look forward to a movie we can watch with the kids that has a plot I can enjoy.

In the completely opposite direction Superjail: Season Two comes out on DVD on March 13th also. I love the animation of this psychedelic cartoon about a huge futuristic prison run by a disturbed Willy Wonka -esque warden. The humor is vulgar, but it’s twisted AND funny.

Marvel Comics gets ready for its super team-up movie with Avengers Assemble #1, out March 14th. They call it a jumping on point for new readers who want to get to know “Earth’s Mightiest Heroes” in the main continuity of the Marvel universe.

The geekiest holiday of all 3/14, or Pi Day is coming up, check out PiDay.org to find gear, ecards and info about this “irrational and transcendental number”.

If you check any of these things out, or notice a new release that should have made the list this week, let us know in the comments or even on Twitter.

Category : Comics, Math, Movies
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05th Mar2012

What You Shouldn’t Miss This Week 03/05/12

by Jeremy

cover to Season One DVD of Game of Thrones

Another week and we bring you more exciting new releases from the worlds of video games, movies and comic books! This week includes Mass Effect 3, another spin-off from Vertigo’s Fables comic book and the complete first season of Game of Thrones on DVD!

The long-awaited final chapter to the Mass Effect trilogy hits stores on March 6th (for PC, Xbox360 and PS3). I know how excited everyone is to finish Commander Shepard’s story, so excited in fact that there have been reports of pirated versions hitting torrent sites over the weekend!

Also out on March 6th, Game of Thrones: The Complete First Season on DVD. The first book from George R.R. Martin’s fantasy saga A Song of Fire and Ice hits the small screen in the series’ first season complete with extras including audio commentaries and character profiles.

In a world where I consider spin-offs  a four letter word, here’s one that won’t piss you off. Vertigo’s Fairest #1 hits comic book racks on March 7th, starring the females of the award-winning Fables series: “Balancing horror, humor and adventure, FAIREST explores the secret histories of Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel, Cinderella, The Snow Queen, Thumbelina, Snow White, Rose Red and others.”

On March 9th John Carter will open in theaters nation wide. Some people call it an Avatar rip off, I call them stupid because Edgar Rice Burroughs wrote this over 100 years ago, and it has appeared in multiple forms of media, including comic books. If Disney plays their cards right, this could be a massive film series, considering their were 11 volumes in the Barsoom series.

If you get a chance to check any of these out or we forgot something; let us know in the comments section, or on Twitter!

Category : Comics, Gaming, Movies, TV Shows
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