Comic book, graphic novel and movie news that impacts nerd culture

It’s an adult show, and going into it, 13 episodes, we didn’t get 13 scripts straightaway, we got two scripts. We kind of got the start of the flavor of the program.

Everybody was absolutely buzzing and excited and frightened and vulnerable.  Everybody worked tremendously hard, all the departments … nothing was segregated, everybody worked very hard to make this project the best project they’d ever worked on.  

“Swamp Thing” on DVD today

Look for my extended interview with Dick “Swamp Thing” Durock in Friday’s Weekend Look in the Oklahoman, but here’s a a bit about the makeup process that I couldn’t quite fit in the article:

Durock said the makeup process on the first feature took nearly four hours, but decreased to two hours on the second film.

“By the time we got to the series, which ironically was the best makeup and best costume of all of them, it was down to 45 minutes,” Durock said.  “We did it just by experience.”

Durock said on the first film, the “Swamp Thing” face is made up of 10 to 15 appliances.  But in the series, several of those pieces were condensed into one.

“We could use more of my own face and own eyes for the series,” Durock said.  

Heath Ledger found dead

(AP Photo)

The New York Times is reporting that actor Heath Ledger, star of “Brokeback Mountain,” who appears as the Joker in this summer’s “The Dark Knight,” was found dead today in a SoHo apartment.

According to the Times, the police found pills near the body.  They do not suspect foul play.

From the Associated Press:

NYPD spokesman Paul Browne said Ledger had an appointment for a massage at the Manhattan apartment believed to be his home. The housekeeper who went to let Ledger know the masseuse was there found him dead at 3:26 p.m.

Wolverine #62 preview

From Marvel:

In the aftermath of Messiah CompleX, Wolverine is set on a quest for vengeance—and he’s got some new friends to help him make it happen! In Wolverine #62, an X-Men: Divided We Stand tie-in, red-hot (and newly-Marvel Exclusive) author Jason Aaron (Scalped) and fan-favorite artist Ron Garney (Amazing Spider-Man) set Logan on a bezerker barrage for someone who’s role in Messiah CompleX is so huge, so pivotal that they may just get snikt’d! Now that Wolverine has seen the cost of this war over the new mutant child, he’s not about to let the responsible parties get away!

“Jason and Ron deliver a high-octane chase movie that’ll have you gasping…and that sheds new light on Logan’s long and complicated relationship with another core X-Men character,” says X-Men Group Editor Axel Alonso.

“Wild Cards” returns!

Today, Tor Books relaunches the popular “Wild Cards” series with “Inside Straight.”  Edited by George R. R. Martin, “Wild Cards” were a series of shared-universe anthology novels that examined a world where superheroes were real.  An alien virus was released on Earth in 1946, killing 9 of every 10 exposed to it. Most of those who survive become deformed, but one in 100 is gifted with amazing powers.  These “jokers” and “aces” are at the heart of the “Wild Cards” series.  This was a favorite for me when they debuted in 1987, and I’m glad, 20 years later, to see the series return.  

Info from Tor:  

Launched in 1987, WILD CARDS is the longest-running series in the shared worlds and fantasy genre. A contemporary world of smart, complicated, and incredibly diverse superheroes is brilliantly re-imagined by this group of acclaimed fantasy writers.

Tor Books is proud to present the re-launch of this landmark series with its eighteenth volume, Inside Straight (A Tor hardcover; $24.95; January 22, 2008). Headed up by #1 New York Times bestselling author George R. R. Martin, a top-notch cast of authors introduce a new generation of young, hip, and messed-up superheroes in an interconnected storyline that spans from Egypt to Hollywood.

Meet the girl whose stuffed dragon becomes a fifty-foot, fire-breathing version of itself (and she has a whole bag full of other little stuffies …), the six-armed drummer man most likely to appear on a Rolling Stones cover, and the fox-tailed Japanese guy who uses mythology to create optical illusions.

It is 2007, and the highest rated show on television is American Hero. Earth Witch, Pop Tart, Curveball, Bugsy, and twenty-four other young superheroes—aka “aces”—battle one other in a series of tasks and stunts. On this reality show like no other, alliances form and rivalries explode, as the aces race to make it to the final showdown.

Many years ago, a DNA-altering alien virus was accidentally unleashed, killing 90 percent of those infected. Nine percent of the survivors mutated into “jokers,” tragically deformed creatures—while the other one percent, the “aces,” found themselves transformed with superpowers.

Others still carried the “wild card” within them, never knowing the day when their card would turn . . .

Now a new generation has come of age, a generation born into the world of the wild card. Computer geeks, hip-hop freaks, rock stars, and Bohemian slackers—these are the new aces for the millennium. They don’t really understand what the first generation went through—but they know that the world still needs saving and that their parents didn’t quite do the job.

As intrigue boils on and off the set of the American Hero reality show—with a few surprises, tricksters, and old friends shaking up the act—an incident in the Middle East escalates a worldwide event that will involve all the superheroes . . . no matter which side they’re on.

With cameo appearances by the first generation “aces,” INSIDE STRAIGHT is action-packed dangerous fun with an unforgettable and unpredictable cast of characters. This is only the beginning of a projected triad of volumes—so let the games begin.

In addition, Dabel is prepping a comic-book series for April.  From the release:

“Wild Cards is one of those series in science fiction that many comic book fans have read, because it’s really a sci-fi take on superheroes,” explained Ernst Dabel, President of Dabel Brothers Publishing. “And that’s excellent news, because this story feels right at home in the format. It’s a great way for old fans to enjoy the story in a new way, and it’s also a wonderful introduction to the world of Wild Cards for those who’ve never had a chance to read the books before.”

– Matt Price

Captain America tops comic sales; Oklahoma’s “Thor” is #4

Diamond Comics Distributors, Inc., the primary comic-book distributor to comic-book shops, have announced the best-selling comic books and graphic novels for 2007. Marvel Comics tops both lists, as “Captain America” No. 25 was the best-selling comic book, and “Civil War” was the best selling graphic novel.

Of local interest, “Thor” No. 1, by J. Michael Straczynski, featuring the God of Thunder’s relocation to Oklahoma, was #4 on the list, behind issues #6 and #7 of the Marvel Comics crossover “Civil War.”  “Dark Tower Gunslinger Born” No. 1, based on the Stephen King books, was No. 5.  DC Comics’ highest-charting book was “Justice League of America” #7, coming in at #13.

The graphic novels were more evenly spread, with DC claiming 4 of the top 10. Marvel had 3, including #2 “Marvel Zombies” and #8 “Road to Civil War.”

DC had “Heroes” at #3, based on the TV series, the evergreen “Watchmen” at #4, Alan Moore’s “League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: The Black Dossier” at #7, and Brian K. Vaughan’s “Y: The Last Man Vol. 9 – Motherland” at #9.

Frank Miller’s “300″ finished the year at #5, and volumes six and seven of “Marvel Zombies” writer Robert Kirkman’s “Walking Dead” series rounded out the top 10 (at Nos. 6 and 10.)  

We’ll have more in-depth analysis coming on this.

– Matt Price 

Lean and Mean — Cloverfield’s a winner

After watching “Cloverfield” on Saturday night, I couldn’t stop thinking about one thing:

Man, “Godzilla” was a horrible movie.

At just 76 minutes, “Cloverfield” is everything 1998′s “Godzilla” should have been — scary, funny and unforgettable. One friend I saw it with spent most of the movie with her hands over her mouth, preparing to muffle her screams.

I give all the credit in the world to the marketers on this one. A great movie will win fans, but it takes something special to get that many people to care about a monster movie after all these years.

A lot of people say it’s related to 9/11 (destruction in New York City, though that was a theme in prior monster flicks, too), but all I cared about was how exciting the film was. I found myself thinking today about sneaking out to another showing, just because I thought I might enjoy it a second time.

Anybody else see it? What did you think?

– Greg Elwell

“Star Trek” teaser trailer and writer Q&A

Yahoo Movies has debuted the teaser trailer for JJ Abrams’ “Star Trek,” set for release this Christmas.  Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto star as a younger James T. Kirk and Spock at Starfleet Academy.  (Edit: It’s now also up at the official site.)

Also check out this interesting Q&A at Trekmovie.com with writer Roberto Orci.

Much more in the link, but a few interesting tidbits:  

TrekMovie.com: In my review I noted that the trailer seemed to be trying to make the connection from today to the future of Trek…was that the intention?

Roberto Orci: Absolutely. This is us. This is who we are. This is real. This is maybe not so far off in the future as it used to be. In the 60s the cell phone was a fantasy. Now the communicator that Kirk had is not as advanced as my iPhone. It is a different millennium for God’s sake. We are literally a century closer than we were before.

TrekMovie.com: You bring up the 60s. The trailer contains voices from the 60s space race, including John F. Kennedy. What was the thinking behind that? And is there some kind of JFK-Kirk link you are trying to make?

Roberto Orci: First of all, it has been written about that Kirk was in a way modeled after JFK. Like being the youngest captain ever, like Kennedy was the youngest President ever. Obviously the space race being kicked off by JFK is very much associated with Star Trek. It was also due to what we just discussed and linking it back to today.

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Overall, I think this is a nice move for the trailer, pulling in the history of space travel and reminding people what it was that made people so hungry for “Star Trek” in the first place. 

– Matt Price