Tuesday, June 4, 2013

80-Pagecast Episode 6: Sales Charts

We will not be canceled! Unfortunately some comicbooks we like get canceled. Jen Ulm, Rob London, and David Henion take a look at some with lows sales they hope don't get canceled. Plus they talk about Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye (yes again), Superior Spider-man (no surprise), and the all new adjectiveless X-men #1. Show notes after the jump.

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

80-Pagecast Episode 4: Iron Man Three

Who's got six thumbs and has seen Iron Man 3? Jen Ulm, Rob London, and David Henion. They spend a a while talking about what was good and bad about it. But only after celebrating everyone's favorite holiday, Free Comicbook Day. And of course take the time to talk about recent issues of Superior Spiderman (again), Gold Digger 200, and Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye (again). Show notes after the jump.



Intro Music: Iron Man, Black Sabbath

Appendectomy Music: Iron Man (1966) cartoon opening theme

Appendectomy Subject: Mordecai Midas

Outro Music: Goldfinger theme song, Shirley Bassey

Rob's Tumblr: Spiderman feels
Jen's videos: What Are We Looking At
David likes: Gold Digger issues 1-199 FREE

Monday, April 22, 2013

80-Pagecast Episode 3: Badguy Books

The bi-weekly 80-Pagecast becomes tri-weekly for this special episode!  This week  Jen Ulm, Rob London, and David Henion spend some time talking about terribly great villains in Superior Spiderman, Thanos Rising, and Transformers: Robots in Disguise. Plus some of our favorite books starring villainous casts from the past. Show notes after the jump.



Intro Music: Amazing Spider-Man (1977) TV opening theme

Appendectomy Music: Great Lakes Avengers, Kirby Krackle

Appendectomy Subject: The Voice

Outro Music: HOUSE theme song, remixed by Lucas Ciarlante

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Godzilla VS The Essential

I've known Godzilla a long time. I was practically raised on Godzilla movies playing on Creature Features every Saturday morning as a child. I own every Godzilla movie ever made on DVD or VHS and in some cases both. As I type I am within spitting distance of three different Godzilla figures. I've read Marvel comics all my life. So why the hell have I never read Marvel's Godzilla: King of the Monsters? I have no idea either. Let's start reading.
With a purposeful grimace and a terrible sound. 
Twenty-four issues of giant city stomping lizard action; written by Doug Moench for all of it, drawn by Herb Trimpe for most of it, colored by I don't care because the Essential is only in black and white. The Essential cover, a reprint of the first issue cover, tells you everything you need to know about this comic. A city smashing, plane crushing, bridge thrashing fire spewing good time is ahead. However Godzilla's hip seems to be only a few stories high, the plane fits easily in his hand, and a huge bridge is like a corndog on a stick for big G. So right off the bat this comic doesn't give a crap about scale.

Inside the story cuts to the chase by having Godzilla--
Up from the depths, thirsty stories high.
Coming. Yes coming. Coming up out of the ocean to attack Alaska after waking up in an iceberg. Godzilla just wanders about ripping up pipe lines and killing people off panel for most of the first issue. S.H.I.E.L.D. shows up to start shooting the overly large lizard. What does this accomplish? It introduces Dum Dum Dugan but mostly just makes Godzilla mad.
Godzilla: Dragon of Science!
Then Jimmy Woo calls Godzilla a Dragon of Science and that is awesome. Oh yeah I forgot to mention Jimmy Woo secret agent and head of the Atlas Foundation is in this comic. Dum Dum is a dick for not letting Jimmy bring his robot or talking gorilla along.


Not much happens in issue two. Some back story of Godzilla attacking Japan that is vague enough to imply the movies took place but doesn't specify any details or other monster names. Godzilla shows up in Seattle to show he is as tall as the Space Needle. 184 meters tall. From the first Godzilla movie until Terror of MechaGodzilla in 1975 Godzilla is only between 50 and 60 meters tall. Guess Godzilla took some steroids before showing up in America.

In issue three Godzilla finally fights someone. Who could this mighty foe be that it took 40 pages of build up before they meet? Well there's only one fair opponent for Godzilla to fight and that's another god: Hercules.
Stupid alarm. We were two panels away from a sex scene.
 Hercules and the  Champions of Los Angeles to be more specific. I'd never heard of them before this issue; apparently the most fun god in the Marvel Universe, Iceman, somebody's Widow, and the worst X-Man ever, Angel, formed a super hero team. They fly to fight big G in their Champscraft. One of your team has wings why doesn't he just fly himself over to--
When Angel died, no angels cried.
Oh right Angel is useless. Hercules has to save his stupid winged butt from being squashed under the toes of supersaurus. But can he? Is even a god strong enough to stop 30,000 tons of massive megalosaur muscle bearing down on him?
Largest crotch shot anyone has ever seen.
Hell yeah. He's the Prince of Power. Of course this also makes Godzilla madder. In the ensuing city crushing chaos the Champions get in a jurisdictional pissing match with Dum Dum. And Hercules accidentally downs the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier by throwing a bridge at it. Oops. It's not his fault, Godzilla has really good reflexes for someone as tall as the Golden Gate Bridge.

Fifty four pages into this collection and Godzilla hasn't fought a single monster yet. He will get around to kicking some colossal kaiju keester.
When will then be now!?
Next time Dum Dum. Godzilla throws down with a gigantic foe next time.

Monday, August 1, 2011

I'm the Zuggernaut Bitch

Firestorm has a dismal rogues gallery. He just has a dirty closet full of various furries and bondage fetishists mostly. Looking through those weirdos a strange one just caught my eye.

"Where is my right leg Torchman?"
Zuggernaut. *snicker* Seriously. That's the name you went with? Something about the design of this giant purple space roach is eerily familiar.

No one ever expects to be molested by a wad of chewing gum.
A man finds an unearthly object near a lake. It reaches out binding itself to his flesh. Fusing together this man with this alien organism to be come biologically enhanced weapon. Wait just a damn minutes...

Red Comet versus the White Devil. Who will survive? Hint: probably not the fat guy.
He's a pink cockaroach. Who is rather blatantly a pink Guyver. Issue 69 of Firestorm came out in early 1988. Bio Booster Armor Guyver started publication in 1985. Looks to me like like John Ostrander and Joe Brozowski (J. J. Birch) might have artistically plagarised Takaya Yoshiki. But maybe I'm jumping to conclusions.This could all be an homage to an imported manga that found it's way into the DC offices. What are the odds this is a direct rip off--


The Bug Brothers Barbershop Quartet is now accepting applications for a fourth member.
Zuggernaut blatantly uses the Guyver's Mega-Smasher in an almost direct trace from the first volume. Holy crap Joe Brozowski. All he did was double the antenna, throw in some monster teeth, add some knee spikes, make the Mega-Smasher nipples smaller and ask the colorist not to make him teal. No wonder Zuggernaut was redesigned for his next appearance.

I've used photographs, comics books, paused videos, just about everything one time or another to get just the right pose for a drawing. Heck I designed my own Guyver like monsters when I was in high school. So I can understand borrowing from Guyver. But even at that age I was smart enough to not just trace a panel, slap a new head on and call it a day. You suck Brozowski.