Writing Ain't Nuthin' But a Sandwich - Hold the Grey Poupon

Been a while - how does everybody keep up with these things? - but I realize now that I have a bunch of writing projects in the works and though I can’t give complete details on everything I thought I could at least talk a bit about them – and hopefully convey my enthusiasm for this wonderful time as a writer I’m entering.

Where to start?

June’s ALL-STAR COMICS COMPANION VOL. 4, from editor Roy Thomas, contains an article by me on Humor in the All-Star JSA stories of the 1940s. This is my second article for Roy’s wonderful Companions and I’m honored to be a part of them – especially since Vol. 4 is to be the last.

HAWKMAN COMPANION author Doug Zawisza and I are in the middle of writing a book for the McFarland company that will detail – and I mean detail – an entire form of super hero stories for one particular major comic company. We’re talking issue-by-issue commentary and all, and that should be out sometime in 2010. McFarland books are pricey but they make there way into libraries and schools and are really bringing a wealth of pop culture information in a scholarly way. More on this one in the next few months – fingers crossed.

FLASH COMPANION author Keith Dallas is kicking off a series of tomes for TwoMorrows and has wrangled a fantastic group of writers to tackle each volume – including Yours Truly. When I say the scope of this project is big, I mean BIG. As in, it doesn’t get much bigger when talking about the comics industry. Look for this to begin, hopefully, in 2010 with official announcements coming this summer, I believe. Comic book fans of all ages should find something in this project to interest them.

The really great people at Sequart and I have just started down the road on a book of essays I’ll be editing, centered on a comic-related subject that’s near and dear to my heart. This one…sigh…this one will be a true labor of love for me. A thank you note to something that made me the huge geek I am today. I’ll not only be editing what is shaping up to be an incredible line-up of contributors, if I do say so myself, but I’ll also be writing two of the essays myself. If you haven’t heard of this company before, take a look at what they’ve come out with so far and what they’ve got on the way. Look for more news on my book later in the year, if all goes well.

I have a pitch in currently to one of the Top Six comic companies for a limited series – and I’m on pins and needles over it. I’ve gotten over a hurdle or two already with it and it looks like its doing okay but the Waiting Game has been particularly hard this time around and I have to push the pitch to the edges of my consciousness or I won’t be able to function day-to-day. Wish me luck, folks! This is a story about a group of characters that I’ve loved for years but don’t always get the exposure I think they need and deserve. If this project launches I'll be blogging its progress right there at The Beard.

One of my own creations has made a bit of progress in recent months, as I’ve found a very, very fine penciler, Eric Johns, whose excited about the concept and has already done five full pages from Issue #1 that we’ll be using to “shop” the project around. The pages are being inked as I type and once the lettering and coloring are finished it’s off to the Races with it – again, wish me luck! Here’s a sneak-peek for you!


And as always I continue to provide weekly content for Marvel.com – and I’m here to tell you that I work for and with a solid bunch of professionals who’re passionate about what they do and above all take seriously the fine art of funny books. They are True Believers in every sense of the word – here’s to Ben, Ryan and John – among many others!

Whew! How did I get involved in so much STUFF?!?! All this and a full-time day job and I must be insane…but I love comics and I love talking about them and above all - WRITING about them.

My Very Own Universe

Here's the latest in a new column I've been doing for a few months with the great bunch of people over at Fist Full of Comics & Games. They came to me and asked if I'd do something with them and we came up with the idea of me spouting off about the DC Universe - my DCU, to be precise, the parts of it I buy and read. Gotten some pretty good reactions so far. Give a read and see what you think.

Gigs-a-Go-Go

Just recently had some happy news on a few of the writing fronts:

I had an article accepted by Roy Thomas for the ALL-STAR COMPANION VOL.4. That will be out sometime early next year - possibly in January or February. Got the piece in just under the wire and I'm thrilled to be part of the book.

Doug Zawisza, the editor/writer of the upcoming HAWKMAN COMPANION, and I just had a proposal for a book picked up by a publisher. More news on this when we have a better idea of when it's coming out. Its comic-related, natch!

Divine Intervention: The Uncut THOR

May wonders never cease. Miracles do happen.

While perusing my comics the other day – research for a Marvel.com article – I came across something that I was sure didn’t exist: an uncut 1970s comic from my own childhood. Why is that so amazing?

I cut up all my Marvels for their Marvel Value Stamps.

Those of you under the age of 35 or so may ask, “What’s a Marvel Value Stamp?” Take a look here and when you’re done you may get the impact of what I’m saying. My copy of THOR #224 from 1974 has an intact lettercol with its MVS, #87 from Series A, in perfect condition. I about swooned when I discovered it. Stunned, I stared at it for several minutes, reveling in its pristine goodness and wondering how it ever escaped the scissors.

Every once in a while I chide myself out loud for cutting up my comics, but The Little Woman always reminds me that not only was I a child at the time but that they were meant to be cut up. Yeah, I know; that’s tantamount to treason these days but back then it was the thing to do – heck, Marvel would even sell you a stamp album into which you could paste those little squares of pulp. Funny times. More innocent times, but also funny. I often miss them.

I’d also like to note that this is the one and only issue of THOR that I own from my childhood. See, my father bought me all my comics back then, from 1972 til about 1978, and to this day I often find it difficult to figure out how he’d choose one comic over another to buy me. “Sporadic” would be a good word to describe some of the runs of titles in my collection, and though I know some of that was due to the crummy distribution of the era – drugstores, pals, drugstores – some of it was also Dad’s perception of either what I’d like or what he himself liked. DC comics came out on top, natch, and Marvels came in second. AMAZING SPIDER-MAN, MARVEL TEAM-UP, and AVENGERS were good bets and I even got the occasional CAPTAIN AMERICA and IRON MAN. The monster and devil stuff was right out, usually, but a stray HULK or DAREDEVIL could be counted on from time to time - but THOR? Nopers. One issue and one issue only. What was it about the God of Thunder that turned my father off? Did its covers denote non-super hero action, of which Dad himself was fond? Too many scantily-clad ladies? Too many scantily-clad men? I don’t know and I’m not asking the 72 year-old curmudgeon.

The mystery will simply have to prevail. For now, I get to gaze at my mint-condition Marvel Value Stamp – which by the way is of J. Jonah Jameson.

No wonder I didn’t cut that one out.

Plastic Fantastic

A quick review of some recent toy acquisitions:

Star Wars The Force Unleashed Battle-Damaged Darth Vader (Hasbro) – I buy very, very few Star Wars figures anymore but once in a while one comes along that I just have to get. It’s hard to put into words why I wanted this particular Vader figure – I don’t know anything about this game it’s based on, or care – but part of it is that I’ve always been fascinated with the Anakin Skywalker that lurks beneath the armor of Darth Vader. This figure is both insane and cool, broaching the secrecy of who Vader is within the fiction of the pre-First Trilogy era and daring to present a Dark Lord that can be this damaged by an opponent. The detail is great with fun pieces that detach and give glimpses of the both the ravaged Anakin underneath and his “more machine than man” parts. I dig the package graphics, too. Hasbro’s got some of the Star Wars action figure mojo back its lost in more recent years with this and the McQuarrie concept figures.

New Teen Titans Series 2 Robin (DC Direct) – I’m not a huge Titans fan but I am a pretty big Dick Grayson Robin fan and this figure looked so good in the solicitations. I’m happy to say that the actual production figure is almost as good, with a fantastic sculpt, good paint apps, and enough articulation to satisfy a few display poses. This figure partnered with DC Direct’s First Appearance Robin, the Silver Age Robin from the boxed set, and the 1/6 scale Robin complete a quartet of Robin goodness that I could only have dreamed of as a kid; I can’t imagine needing any more Dick Grayson Robins after this. My only small gripes are the over-abundance of blue, blobby highlights on the hair and the decidedly unimaginative stand graphics.

Showcase Presents Series 1 Hawkman (DC Direct) – In the upcoming “Hawkman Companion” from TwoMorrows I wrote in my contributor bio that I thought the ultimate/perfect Hawkman action figure had yet to be made – well, this might be it, kids. I love the sculpting on this one. It portrays both strength and oddly enough a kind of grace, which if you look at Joe Kubert’s art could hardly come as a surprise. The wings fit easily into the holes in the figures back and are designed to help Carter stand perfectly. The Morningstar accessory is very nice indeed and the mask fits snugly. My caveats here would be that the “pupil” paint apps on the mask’s “eyes” are too stark, not being connected to the upper eyelid like in the original artwork and the solicitation pics. It gives the figure a bug-eyed look. Also, it seems as if the original prototype had a ball-jointed neck or it was originally sculpted in a straight-ahead fashion. The production figure’s head is stuck looking downward. Small nitpick.

Marvel Mighty Muggs The Thing (Hasbro) – God help me but I’m now a Mighty Muggs fan. I resisted at first, viewing them simply as mass-produced knock-offs of the whole “artist/designer toy” craze, but these little guys wormed their way into my heart. It was this very one, The Thing, that did it. Other Star Wars and Marvel Mighty Muggs came and went under my gaze but ol’ Ben Grimm, my favorite Marvel hero, is so cool as a Mugg that I broke down and picked him up at Wizard World Chicago. I appreciate the heck out of the deco’ing on these figures and coupled with some really nice package graphics makes for a wonderful little treat – and a nice break from “standard” action figures. Now I just have to control myself. If they make a Son of Satan, Black Knight, or Stingray Mighty Mugg – I’m sunk.

DC Minimates Series 7 Blackhawk & Sgt. Rock (DC Direct/Art Asylum) – DC Minimates are dead – but what a way to go-go. I know this set has been out for a little while but I just got around to picking them – and glad I did. These two soldiers are loaded up with “extras”, unique pieces that are above and beyond the call of duty for Minimates. I’m a huge Blackhawk fan so this set was a must for me and the Rock figure reminds me of so many great “Brave & the Bold” stories of my kid-dom was an added bonus. The little pistols look cool in Blackhawk's hands and while Rock can’t really hold his rifle properly his rugged “chest” piece has sculpted ammo clips, grenades, and a knife. If that wasn’t enough, his helmet comes off to reveal his deco’ed buzzcut – too cool. If only Blackhawk’s hat was removable without taking his hair along with it. Ah well, the series is on its last legs and I’m very, very glad to have gotten these characters in it before they play “taps”.

I Am Car Owner, Hear Me Whine

I have a love/hate relationship with automobiles.

Where am I coming from with this? I just got socked with an $800 car repair bill today. Wow, it hurt just to type that.

I love the way they get us to where we're going, and provide heat in the winter and cool in the summer. Otherwise I hate them. I hate how they won't run forever and forever and forever unless you take care of them. What kind of world is this? If I didn't have to own a car, I wouldn't.

I don't have that much-vaunted American "love affair" with automobiles. It's just not in my genetic makeup, I guess. I don't care about the makes, and styles, and models, and all that. I don't care about how much horsepower they have or what kind of engine's under the hood or if they have sun roofs or any of that jazz. I need a car to run, run well, and to have a way to lock them. That's about it.

Here's what I've learned today: never, ever take your car into the shop for anything. Because, you know what? They'll need something repaired. Something other than what you took them in for. I went in for an oil change and a tire rotation, and oh, did I get rotated. Still spinning, in fact.

So, there goes my monthly bonus from work, my freelance writing check, and a sizable chunk of my tax refund. Its as if somebody somewhere said "Hey, Jim's got some money! He doesn't need that! Somebody else needs it more!" Don't laugh; you know its true.

So, that's my whine. It only hurts when I sit.

I hope my car doesn't read this. I wouldn't want to hurt its feelings.

Ohio Beard & the Crystal-Clear Yet Annoying Reminders

This was an odd week, one in which I got a few hard-core reminders that I’m getting older. Which kind of sucks, you know. Not overly complaining, mind you, just sayin’.

On Tuesday I got the biopsy report on a spot on my eyebrow that I had removed a week and a half ago: basal cell skin cancer. It’s a topical variety, nothing that gets bad unless you do nothing about it. I had it cut off so I guess that counts as doing something. Doc told me there’s a very small chance of it coming back and from here on out I just get regular look-overs. My mother and sister both have forms of skin cancer so I took this very seriously. I feel good about what the steps I took but as I was told this was a result of a sun-event that probably took place about thirty-five years ago, it made me feel old.

Thursday I went in for an eye exam, first one in at least ten years (I know, I know) and yes, as I guessed, I need bifocals. If Tuesday made me feel old, Thursday made me feel ancient – and the capper was yet to come.

After my eye exam I went to see “Indiana Jones and the Incredibly Long Title of the Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls” and it’s sixty-something star. That made me reflect on the first three Indy movies and that made me feel oldly-old-ancienty-old. Then Karen Allen appeared on-screen and my mortality flew out the window and into a nearby trash can.

I liked the film a lot, though, and got a big kick out of it. I wouldn’t want to see them try it again but I appreciated everything that went into it and would gladly give it another screening. It should be viewed simply as another Indiana Jones film, albeit one made in and made for the 21st century. Looking at in any other way would be foolish, I think. Its not Tolstoy or Shakespeare or even McCartney and Lennon; its Indiana Jones and its one heckuva fun way to spend a few hours.