Tags Matching: 00s

Daredevil by Joe Q.

By admin | Published May 13, 2010

A great piece of original art by the current editor in chief of Marvel.

If this was a little bit closer to my price range (say, 1500 or so dollars less…) I’d really think about it because this is an iconic level piece of original art. Why do I qualify it as that, you ask?

1. Notable run by notable artist. Joe Quesada’s stint on Daredevil (part of which include Kevin Smith as the writer / sidekick?) was amongst his most defining.

2. Prominence. This is as splash as a splash page will get. Daredevil is front and center and is done exactly how I imagine Joe Q’s Daredevil looks when I close my eyes. Good use of shadow, smooth style and somehow a hyper-realist style with uber smooth lines. Not to be confused with the somewhat experimental style of his later Daredevil:Father miniseries.

3. Supporting character. Echo probably isn’t familiar to everyone who’s reading this, but she should be. One of the better Marvel characters in the past ten. Love the style here… oh ps, anyone catch the Black Widow in the background? There ya’ go…

Anyways, I could go on. This piece is crying for a frame and a true fan. Wish I had the cash grip for this right now…
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I Feel A Lot Safer Knowing He’s Out There Defending Me

By pkindlon | Published May 5, 2010

I don’t know much about Rage. I picked up that he’s a Gay Crusader, but beyond that, he’s a bit of a mystery to me. He was created by fictional characters on a television show I never watched, so that gives this guy about two layers of abstraction that prevent me from understanding what the hell is going on here. This comic had a one-time printing of 3,000 and acted as a promotional item for the 2nd season DVD set of Queer As Folk.

I dunno. I’d read it, I guess. Curious about what constitutes a gay crusader.

Let’s Get Anthropomorphic!

By pkindlon | Published May 3, 2010

Man, the good old days, right? The halcyon era of funny animal books where you couldn’t go to a decent comic rack without getting an eyeful of ferrets with chainguns or some such nonsense. I can’t fully dismiss this stuff, because Usagi Yojimbo has been consistently readable for longer than most of the women I date have been alive. That said, any time a genre blows up, there are coattail riders and straight-up posers. See: zombie comics.

A good place to start is Albedo Anthropomorphics, a pioneer of the genre. This issue includes an early Usagi Yojimbo feature.

Here’s another series Stan Sakai used to get the Usagi name out before landing his own series.

Oddly, the longest-running of the funny animal comics is the one where the animals have sex. Here’s issue 51 or, the cover art from issue 51… I can’t tell based on this really half-assed Ebay listing.

If Ninja Turtles weren’t tongue-in-cheek enough for your liking, you always had the option of Boris the Bear. He sort of sucked, but there must have been something about him that stood out from the pack because he had his own book for longer than most.

If you really can’t get enough animals with hands, here’s some unfunny crap that actually managed to sell a decent grip of books back in the day. This was a parody of TMNT… which was a parody itself… so that makes this a parody of a parody… or, more succinctly, garbage.

Finally, if you needed proof of the enduring popularity of anthropomorphic animal books, here’s the nu version. It reads like a classroom of seventh graders collaborated on a fantasy book after watching the first 15min of Lord of the Rings, but it does have vermin with swords so there will always be a market for it. Also, check out this dude selling comics he got for free TWO DAYS AGO for a Buy It Now over $10. Nice hustle, jerk.

A Day at the Beach

By pkindlon | Published April 28, 2010

I love Paul Chadwick. His Concrete work strikes every chord you could hope for. Here’s a limited print that manages to touch on many of the same themes as the series.

I freakin’ love this guy. Even if you aren’t familiar with Concrete, this is a attractive piece of art you could hang in your house to appear more sophisticated than you really are. Someone buy this, I’m too broke.

Spider-Man is Into Italian Motorsports

By pkindlon | Published April 26, 2010

Here’s one more for the kids. If you always imagined that Peter Parker would eventually leave his job at the Bugle for a more lucrative career as a MotoGP driver, well, here’s your toy. I guess. I don’t know what’s up with Spider-Man’s pants in this dynamic and entirely not-depressing version of his character. He does look like quite a playboy in that jacket though. Totally doesn’t suck. And the yellow kneepads are a simple, yet effective, accessory that feels appropriate for the outfit. Altogether, a well-designed figure I could see myself adding to my collection.

Start’m Young

By pkindlon | Published April 26, 2010

Old enough to teethe… old enough to read! Here’s an effort on the part of Marvel to make fans for life out of toddlers. While I don’t know why an infant would want to chew on The Hulk’s hand, I respect their right to do so and, moreover, I respect Marvel’s hustle. God bless a free market. Make mine Marvel!

Drokk! It’s the Judges! Run!

By pkindlon | Published April 23, 2010

Some kids grow up idolizing their dads. Some kids want to be their older brothers. My dad was in jail and my brother was on coke so, for me, Judge Dredd was the strong male influence I needed. Sure, he stepped on civil liberties and may’ve been a bit severe at times (“switch to hi-ex!”) but he was a man of his times! Mega-City One is a dangerous place. It’s up to the Judges to maintain order! That’s why we gave them that power!

Over in the US, Judge Dredd was a sort of cult book. Back in the UK, this dude was bigger than Mickey Mouse. I thought to best demonstrate Judge Dredd’s cult of personality, I’d highlight some auctions that have nothing to do with comics.

Here we have the speaker cut-out’s from the classic Judge Dredd pinball game. What purpose do they serve now? That’s up to you, perp!

A role-playing miniature from the Judge Dredd game. Angel gang. Very dangerous.

A poster of entirely too close a close-up.

My favorite auction I’ve seen in a long minute. A dude selling an index card with a a marker and color pencil illustration of his own. This is genius. Dude is an Ebay millionaire, I guarantee it.

Modern Classics: Iron Fist

By admin | Published April 15, 2010

Danny Rand is Iron Fist.

But up until Ed Brubaker and Matt Fraction, being Iron Fist was pretty lame.

And though the switch from dojo slippers to regular boots was a big boost, it was the fact that Iron Fist for the first time felt tangible. He was real. He was finally realized in the Marvel way.

For as long as I can remember Iron Fist felt like he should be cool. The elements were there – he was halfway between Daredevil and Tony Stark, a great supporting cast and the potential was there. But his characterization was essentially halfway between a 70′s Kung Fu movie and the depth of Burt Reynolds. It wasn’t much to work with. After a relatively successful run in the 70′s with Power Man (Luke Cage), he was burnt toast and essentially faded into obscurity, save an appearance once a year or so in Daredevil, Web of Spider-Man, or… that’s about it. He even died. Did you know that? I didn’t – and as a 9 year old I treated it like my job to know that kind of thing!!

As it turns out Iron Fist’s peak wouldn’t come in the 1970′s, so Greg Brady, Peter Frampton, and Led Zeppelin can keep that seat warm for someone else. Someone finally put a soul into that shell courtesy of the aforementioned writing team of Brubaker and Fraction. Not just to Danny Rand, though that is done in spades throughout, but also to the “iron fist” as a mythos. K’un L’un meant absolutely nothing compared to what it is now.

In this, the most recent incarnation of an Iron Fist ongoing series, the risks and rewards of comics come to full fruition. New characters, new stories, and a completely stripped down, refreshing look at a character who had been rotting on the tree for the better part of 25 years. Kudos. You MUST check out the initial three trade collections, and for your convenient consumption they are all posted here: Volume 1 (The Last Iron Fist Story), Volume 2 ( Seven Capital Cities of Heaven), Volume 3 (The Book of Iron Fist).

Go get the Barfbag.

By admin | Published April 12, 2010

Made in an edition limited to 125.

If I was a rich man, I would consider collecting these to rid the Earth of them. Unless your name is Flinthart Glomgold I don’t think you should own a metallic gold hat.

Seriously, vomitous.

Marvel Comics PROFESSOR XAVIER Official X-Men NEW ERA Ultra Limited Edition Flagship Exclusive 59FIFTY CUSTOM Fitted Cap from 2008. Inspired by the leader of the Uncanny X-Men’s Wheel Chair with all-over metallic outer and a buffalo PLAID underbrim which represents the blanket Professor X uses to cover his legs. it is considered one of the rarest New Era Marvel Caps produced. It is a size 7 1/2. This original fitted hat was only available EXCLUSIVELY by special order and was limited to a low 125 worldwide!