Cable & Deadpool #50 (Marvel) - The end! Deadpool’s series ends, but hopefully with his inclusion in Wolverine: Origins and plans to reprint old Deadpool appearances in Deadpool Classic Vol. 1 TPB we will see more of the merc with the mouth.

Green Arrow/Black Canary: The Wedding TPB (DC) - The Green Arrow series has been a fun one to read - starting with Kevin Smith’s issues and continued by Judd Winick, I have enjoyed the writing and Oliver Queen’s character. The wedding thing was a whole big tie-in mess, but here all the pertinent material is collected. Read the rest of this entry »

L For Lloyd

Many of us have seen the film V For Vendetta. Some don’t realize that it was a comic book before that. Written by Alan Moore, this dystopian/super hero book was illustrated by David Lloyd. I was able to speak to Mr. Lloyd about that comic, as well as his newer series, Kickback, published by Dark Horse.

Matt Knicl: What was your general reaction to the movie? Did you feel, like Alan Moore, that it was a “Bush-era fable” or did you think it stood on its own?

David Lloyd: I thought the movie was great, though not as good as the book. But it was a creditable effort, which I was happy to support to the best of my abilities in any way I could. I’ve nothing but praise for everyone involved in bringing the story to the screen and spreading it’s message.
The Wachowski’s definitely had their own agenda in writing the movie and it was evident in the movie itself - but I don’t think that was undermining to the universality of the central themes of the story. Way back in ‘ 88, Alan’s introduction to the DC Vendettas indicated that V was created in reaction to the fascistic tendencies of the Thatcher government, so a lot of people still think the original was a Thatcher-era fable. But this misconception hasn’t damaged the main message of the story, which has always - and will always - rise above the predominant political landscape in any period in which the story is told.

Read the rest of this entry »

With Great Power Comes Great Marketability

According to Marvel, a new Spider-man cartoon will premier on CW’s Kids WB! at 10:00 a.m. EST on March 8. Read the rest of this entry »

I Left My Cape In Champaign-Urbana

In celebration of Valentine’s Day, Cape & Cowl give each other presents. Cape’s questionably-titled book was another sub-plot, too. We replaced Friday’s strip with the one for NIU. Read the rest of this entry »

By now you have all heard of the shootings yesterday at NIU. We all have friends, loved ones, or family members in that region. This hits close to home.

My artist, Shane Smith is a student at NIU and lives in Dekalb. Our comic strip, Cape & Cowl, also runs in NIU’s Northern Star. While he is okay, talking to other people in the area it is clear that it will take time for things to fix themselves. For some it never will.

As a resident advisor, one of the things I told my kids was to call their parents. I know it seems like a no-brainer, but if you haven’t called home yet I encourage you to touch base with your family. When they hear “student” and “shooting” we all know they imagine what would happen if they lost us.

To the right is our comic strip for today. It’s not our best strip, but I think it’s our most important strip.

Cape & Cowl © Matt Knicl 2008
www.shanesmithart.com

If you are a fan of Homestarrunner.com, then the Strong Bad Emails are no stranger to you. Of late, I have been really bad with checking that humor site. A few weeks back, Strong Bad spoofed web comics. Hilarity, as it often does in Strongbadia, ensues.

Ms. Marvel Comics

One of my favorite comic series right now is Brian Reed’s Ms. Marvel. While a solo book, what appeals to me is the various characters that show up in the title as sounding boards for Carol Davers (Ms. Marvel) to bounce off of. So far the series is collected in three trade paperbacks and issue #24 came out last week.

Mr. Reed recently spoke to me about Ms. Marvel and his plans for the future. Read the rest of this entry »

According to Hollywood Reporter:

“20th Century Fox has initiated a legal battle against Warner Bros. over the rights to develop, produce and distribute a film based on the graphic novel Watchmen.

On Friday, the studio sued Warners, claiming it holds the exclusive copyrights and contract rights to Watchmen. Read the rest of this entry »

Green Arrow/Black Canary #5 (DC) - Green Arrow’s son, Connor, is in a coma. Throw in the fact that a shapeshifter had been masquerading as the Emerald Archer, and good old Ollie’s had a rough couple of months. Now he’s got to reevaluate his priorities - starting with the wife he never actually married.

Brit #4 (Image) - Robert Kirkman’s Brit continues his mysterious journey with the help of his sister and cyborg companion. Read the rest of this entry »

Image courtesy
DC Comics

Thank you Paul Dini for saving DC Comics. You have single-handedly saved my faith in the medium in it’s totality. Why?

Because your issues of Detective Comics are single issue stories. I don’t have to wait half a year or longer to see one bad guy get thwarted. Your issues read like Batman: The Animate Series episodes. They introduce villains and Batman defeats them quickly in a fun, thrilling escapist detective story. There is not a big continuity mess I’m seeing in most DC titles right now. Your issues create Batman mythology, instead of other books that tell us there is a back story.

This issue was good on it’s own terms. The Mad Hatter is forming a gang of Lewis Carroll themed villains and as a fan of the book, seeing costumed criminal versions of The Walrus and The Carpenter made me smile more than the Joker.

So thank you for your work. Detective Comics just went to the top of my pull list.