Showing posts with label Meatspace. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Meatspace. Show all posts
Monday, August 01, 2011
More Science!
If you'd like a taste of what we're offering at Gen Con, my good friend Don has posted videos from last year. If you enjoy them, then you're sure to love our presentations this year! If you don't enjoy them, then make sure to come by this year and see how much we've improved! Hope to see you there!
Saturday, July 30, 2011
For Science!
Looks like the last time I mentioned Gen Con Indy on this blog was back in 2008, which is almost a shame. After all, I post more here, I have more readers here, and the folks over here are more likely to head out to a gaming convention for its stated purpose.
So here's the scoop: At that trip in 2008, my group went to a panel put on by some Indiana Ghost Hunters. Being of a scientific, skeptical mindset, we figured "hey, we can do that," and put on a panel of our own the next year (which I was only peripherally involved with, owing to the fact that I triple-booked that weekend with weddings). Last year, I returned to Gen Con as part of the Skeptical Gamers, and we put on a pretty successful series of talks about science and skepticism. We also raised $800 for the Indiana Vaccination Coalition, doing some real, tangible good for a state that needs it (not that all states don't need better vaccination rates). I wrote all about it here if you want more detail.
This year, the Skeptical Gamers are back, and while there have been some unfortunate snafus, we're hoping to have just as much fun and success this year. I'll be speaking in various panels over the weekend on Conspiracy Theories, Cargo Cult Science, Cryptozoology, and General Skepticism, and I'm pretty proud of the presentations I've helped put together for the first and last of those. If you're anywhere near Indianapolis next weekend, I highly recommend stopping by and saying hello.
Oh, and the schedule of panels and talks is right here. Hope to see you there!
So here's the scoop: At that trip in 2008, my group went to a panel put on by some Indiana Ghost Hunters. Being of a scientific, skeptical mindset, we figured "hey, we can do that," and put on a panel of our own the next year (which I was only peripherally involved with, owing to the fact that I triple-booked that weekend with weddings). Last year, I returned to Gen Con as part of the Skeptical Gamers, and we put on a pretty successful series of talks about science and skepticism. We also raised $800 for the Indiana Vaccination Coalition, doing some real, tangible good for a state that needs it (not that all states don't need better vaccination rates). I wrote all about it here if you want more detail.
This year, the Skeptical Gamers are back, and while there have been some unfortunate snafus, we're hoping to have just as much fun and success this year. I'll be speaking in various panels over the weekend on Conspiracy Theories, Cargo Cult Science, Cryptozoology, and General Skepticism, and I'm pretty proud of the presentations I've helped put together for the first and last of those. If you're anywhere near Indianapolis next weekend, I highly recommend stopping by and saying hello.
Oh, and the schedule of panels and talks is right here. Hope to see you there!
Friday, July 29, 2011
It's a Derp!
So that "It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Superman" musical soundtrack I posted about yesterday? I opened it up this morning to rip the tracks so I could listen to it on my iPhone. There was just one problem: it didn't fit onto the little CD-holder spinny bit in my laptop's disc tray.
Looking at the CD, it appeared that the hole was just too small, that there was a little semi-cut circle around that center hole, which was supposed to have been punched out, but wasn't. "Okay," I said, contacting my inner Tim Taylor. "I can fix this. I just need to cut out that center plastic."
So I sat down with a cutting board and a bright lamp and an X-Acto knife, and I went to work. I did pretty well with my CD surgery, cutting out a little chunk of the plastic, figuring I could work on the rest from there. At about that time, I broke the tip off my X-Acto knife and decided to take a break.
I approached my wife, ever the voice of reason, to pitch the next phase of my plan at her (of course, I have more than one X-Acto knife). "I think I know a way to make this go faster, but it will also be more dangerous. I could heat up the blade."
She responded by telling me that this was a bad idea, and that I should just buy a new CD.
I was somewhat dismayed by this turn of affairs, but happy that I had permission to just replace the semi-mutilated disc. Whereupon we went to lunch and ran some errands.
My mind mulled over this problem in the background over the course of the early afternoon, and hit upon something I should have noticed earlier (but in my zeal to do some manly tool-work-cutting, I missed): if the hole in the center was too small, how would it fit on the little plastic CD-holding-bit in the jewel case?
Returning home, I decided to test this new notion, and tried the CD in the disc tray again. It fit. I was just apparently uncoordinated and stupid before.
So now I have a slightly-mutilated Superman musical soundtrack CD, and it's a good thing that I don't listen to the actual physical discs very often anymore. And I feel like precisely the idiot that I am. But at least it ripped!
If yesterday was Mark Waid day, then today was Superman day. The rest of my online Borders order arrived, including things that I wasn't aware had shipped yet. So now I have Superman Chronicles Vol. 5 and 6 on my shelf, as well as Michael Eury's "The Krypton Companion" and the Neal Adams/Denny O'Neil "Superman vs. Muhammad Ali" hardcover reprint, which I've never actually read. So that's exciting.
And as long as today is Superman Day, I might as well mention something I've been meaning to talk about in the last couple of posts. I'm reading Elliot S! Maggin's second Superman novel, "Miracle Monday," and it's quite enjoyable, but one bit has really stuck out. Kristin Wells, the time-traveling historian who would later become Superwoman, writes a journal entry about halfway through the book, shortly after she'd been possessed or otherwise influenced by the book's villain, the demonic C.W. Saturn. It's some of the best subtle, psychological horror I've read in a superhero story. I feel like it's damning with faint praise to say it reminded me of Stephen King's short story "1408," but it's the same kind of slow-burn madness evidenced by things just being slightly off, and it's accomplished in a fairly small space. You can read it here, though I suspect it won't have the same impact if you haven't read the rest of the book up to it. So you could start here then.
Laura Hudson wrote essay on female creators at DC, why it's important, and why Dan Didio's dismissive, defensive answers to the problem are a problem. It's worth reading if you haven't, and I agree with it on pretty much every count.
Looking at the CD, it appeared that the hole was just too small, that there was a little semi-cut circle around that center hole, which was supposed to have been punched out, but wasn't. "Okay," I said, contacting my inner Tim Taylor. "I can fix this. I just need to cut out that center plastic."
So I sat down with a cutting board and a bright lamp and an X-Acto knife, and I went to work. I did pretty well with my CD surgery, cutting out a little chunk of the plastic, figuring I could work on the rest from there. At about that time, I broke the tip off my X-Acto knife and decided to take a break.
I approached my wife, ever the voice of reason, to pitch the next phase of my plan at her (of course, I have more than one X-Acto knife). "I think I know a way to make this go faster, but it will also be more dangerous. I could heat up the blade."
She responded by telling me that this was a bad idea, and that I should just buy a new CD.
I was somewhat dismayed by this turn of affairs, but happy that I had permission to just replace the semi-mutilated disc. Whereupon we went to lunch and ran some errands.
My mind mulled over this problem in the background over the course of the early afternoon, and hit upon something I should have noticed earlier (but in my zeal to do some manly tool-work-cutting, I missed): if the hole in the center was too small, how would it fit on the little plastic CD-holding-bit in the jewel case?
Returning home, I decided to test this new notion, and tried the CD in the disc tray again. It fit. I was just apparently uncoordinated and stupid before.
So now I have a slightly-mutilated Superman musical soundtrack CD, and it's a good thing that I don't listen to the actual physical discs very often anymore. And I feel like precisely the idiot that I am. But at least it ripped!
If yesterday was Mark Waid day, then today was Superman day. The rest of my online Borders order arrived, including things that I wasn't aware had shipped yet. So now I have Superman Chronicles Vol. 5 and 6 on my shelf, as well as Michael Eury's "The Krypton Companion" and the Neal Adams/Denny O'Neil "Superman vs. Muhammad Ali" hardcover reprint, which I've never actually read. So that's exciting.
And as long as today is Superman Day, I might as well mention something I've been meaning to talk about in the last couple of posts. I'm reading Elliot S! Maggin's second Superman novel, "Miracle Monday," and it's quite enjoyable, but one bit has really stuck out. Kristin Wells, the time-traveling historian who would later become Superwoman, writes a journal entry about halfway through the book, shortly after she'd been possessed or otherwise influenced by the book's villain, the demonic C.W. Saturn. It's some of the best subtle, psychological horror I've read in a superhero story. I feel like it's damning with faint praise to say it reminded me of Stephen King's short story "1408," but it's the same kind of slow-burn madness evidenced by things just being slightly off, and it's accomplished in a fairly small space. You can read it here, though I suspect it won't have the same impact if you haven't read the rest of the book up to it. So you could start here then.
Laura Hudson wrote essay on female creators at DC, why it's important, and why Dan Didio's dismissive, defensive answers to the problem are a problem. It's worth reading if you haven't, and I agree with it on pretty much every count.
Wednesday, July 06, 2011
Women in Elevators
I've got feet in two big online communities. Obviously, there are the comic fans, but I'm also pretty active in the science/skepticism blogohedron. Recently, there was a flare-up--one of a series, frankly--that exposed some ugly misogyny, some unfortunately unrecognized privilege, and what the hay, touched on everyone's favorite third rail, the issue of "tone"--or, "I don't disagree with anything you said, but did you have to say it that way?"
The inciting incident was a facepalmingly common one--some dude at a conference played the creep. More specifically, awesome Skepchick Rebecca Watson announced her decision to go to bed at 4 AM, and was followed into the elevator by some guy, who proceeded to proposition her. Bottom line, it was creepy, and that's about the extent of Rebecca's initial comment on the subject, which set the whole blogosphere a-gnashin' about feminism and privilege and misogyny and so forth.
On the whole, I think the conversation has been worthwhile. There have been some truly clueless comments by some otherwise intelligent people, and I hear the comment threads are just brimming with misogyny, but it seems like several good things have come out of this incident: first, a line in the sand has been drawn, saying that prominent women in the community will no longer take this sort of treatment silently. A sizable and vocal block of feminist skeptics has formed, slamming their collective staff on the stone ground and telling the Balrog of misogyny that it shall no longer pass. Second, it's shown that no one is necessarily above privilege, and thus no one is above criticism. Finally, and most importantly, I think there's been a lot done in this situation to educate some of the thicker people who might not have gotten it any of the other times this has gone around (and I count myself somewhat among those thick-headed people). Richard Dawkins aside, I think we can all recall times when confronted with creepy people engaging in behaviors that most folks would recognize as socially unacceptable. Not all such situations have such connotations of sex and rape and objectification, but I would hope that we all know what it's like to meet someone who's a total creeper, and to apply that awkward pressure on them in hopes that they will be less creepy.
If you haven't had such experiences, then I suspect that people around you might have.
I think that's easier for most men to understand. Men might not get why women don't like being ogled and cat-called--even my brain clicks to "gee, it'd be nice if someone ogled me once in a while"1--but they get what it's like for someone to stand too close to you in the elevator, to take the urinal next to yours when there's one open on the other side of the restroom, to strike up a conversation from the next stall over...to violate any of a bajillion understood-but-unspoken rules of social conduct and trigger that weirded-out feeling.
I realize, of course, that there's a lot more to it for women, but men have fur, and I think this is something that gets through it a little. Which is why I think that this is a great example: most people see why it's a skeevy thing to do, regardless of their privilege, and not just in the intellectual, detached, "women don't necessarily like being hit on" way that's the case with most of these situations. And that's why I think this incident might actually make a difference to the (thick-headed men in the) community in a way that previous incidents haven't.
Boy, I'm rambling here. So, why am I rambling on this blog instead of the other one that would generally be more suited to this sort of thing? Mainly because I really would like to see that kind of difference happen in the nerd community at large. Ragnell linked to this post describing a strangely similar incident from a comic convention several years back. There were notable differences--Karen Healey wasn't directly propositioned, she was wearing a costume, there were multiple men--but the situation is remarkably similar: woman in an elevator receives unwanted and unwarranted advances from strange men. Strange men who apparently saw no problem with making advances toward a strange woman in an elevator.
Karen mentioned in passing another strange situation in that post:
I realize that this is a larger problem than the geek community, and my conversation with Ragnell and MadMarvelGirl on Twitter suggests that geek conventions may be better than my experience would suggest. All I know is that at GenCon or Wizard World or C2E2, I encountered my fair share of people with no apparent capacity for self-awareness or self-assessment, people ignorant of basic social mores and courtesies, people with no regard for personal space--you know, creepers. Moreover, I think geek culture shields creepy people, and largely justifies, defends, or validates creepy, socially-awkward behavior.
Yes, I realize that people are different, and I'm not one to say that all social rules, standards, or mores are good or justified or reasonable. I also realize that there are actual conditions (like Asperger's) that may impact someone's social intelligence. That's really beside the point, which is that the important social rules--the ones whose violation will set people off as "creepy" and elicit that weirded-out (or threatened) feeling--exist as a result of people's basic social expectations. Violating someone's personal space or ogling them in an elevator violates the basic social contract, the basic principle that people deserve to be treated as individual persons whose desires should be respected and taken into account.
The point, to reiterate, is that people--regardless of gender or dress or attractiveness or whatever--deserve to be treated like people at all times, deserve to have their wishes taken into account at all times. Cornering someone in an elevator when they're trying to go to bed, and asking them to have sex with you, is a violation of that principle. Telling someone that they should be smiling, as if you own stock in their face, is a violation of that principle.
And people should be able to bring this kind of subject up on comic blogs and forums without being shouted down by misogynists and the clueless-and-defensive.
1. My brother likes to eat Ramen noodles. He makes enough money that eating Ramen noodles is one option out of many. I suspect, if he had no choice but to eat Ramen noodles all the time, he'd like it a lot less. There's a difference between wanting a thing, and that thing happening whether you want it to or not.
The inciting incident was a facepalmingly common one--some dude at a conference played the creep. More specifically, awesome Skepchick Rebecca Watson announced her decision to go to bed at 4 AM, and was followed into the elevator by some guy, who proceeded to proposition her. Bottom line, it was creepy, and that's about the extent of Rebecca's initial comment on the subject, which set the whole blogosphere a-gnashin' about feminism and privilege and misogyny and so forth.
On the whole, I think the conversation has been worthwhile. There have been some truly clueless comments by some otherwise intelligent people, and I hear the comment threads are just brimming with misogyny, but it seems like several good things have come out of this incident: first, a line in the sand has been drawn, saying that prominent women in the community will no longer take this sort of treatment silently. A sizable and vocal block of feminist skeptics has formed, slamming their collective staff on the stone ground and telling the Balrog of misogyny that it shall no longer pass. Second, it's shown that no one is necessarily above privilege, and thus no one is above criticism. Finally, and most importantly, I think there's been a lot done in this situation to educate some of the thicker people who might not have gotten it any of the other times this has gone around (and I count myself somewhat among those thick-headed people). Richard Dawkins aside, I think we can all recall times when confronted with creepy people engaging in behaviors that most folks would recognize as socially unacceptable. Not all such situations have such connotations of sex and rape and objectification, but I would hope that we all know what it's like to meet someone who's a total creeper, and to apply that awkward pressure on them in hopes that they will be less creepy.
If you haven't had such experiences, then I suspect that people around you might have.
I think that's easier for most men to understand. Men might not get why women don't like being ogled and cat-called--even my brain clicks to "gee, it'd be nice if someone ogled me once in a while"1--but they get what it's like for someone to stand too close to you in the elevator, to take the urinal next to yours when there's one open on the other side of the restroom, to strike up a conversation from the next stall over...to violate any of a bajillion understood-but-unspoken rules of social conduct and trigger that weirded-out feeling.
I realize, of course, that there's a lot more to it for women, but men have fur, and I think this is something that gets through it a little. Which is why I think that this is a great example: most people see why it's a skeevy thing to do, regardless of their privilege, and not just in the intellectual, detached, "women don't necessarily like being hit on" way that's the case with most of these situations. And that's why I think this incident might actually make a difference to the (thick-headed men in the) community in a way that previous incidents haven't.
Boy, I'm rambling here. So, why am I rambling on this blog instead of the other one that would generally be more suited to this sort of thing? Mainly because I really would like to see that kind of difference happen in the nerd community at large. Ragnell linked to this post describing a strangely similar incident from a comic convention several years back. There were notable differences--Karen Healey wasn't directly propositioned, she was wearing a costume, there were multiple men--but the situation is remarkably similar: woman in an elevator receives unwanted and unwarranted advances from strange men. Strange men who apparently saw no problem with making advances toward a strange woman in an elevator.
Karen mentioned in passing another strange situation in that post:
This and like incidents have happened to me, like many women, time and time again: strange men telling me to “smile!”; strange men shouting “Show us your tits!” as they drive past; strange men groping my breasts and ass in crowded train carriages.It's disturbing, for two reasons. One, it resonates with another such incident I encountered on the skeptical side of the blogosphere. Two, it lays bear the assumption (I think) that's going on here: women's bodies are public. Remember the open source boob project? It's the same kind of thing, but without even the token advances toward consent. A man can expect to have a bubble of personal space, violation of which results in, at the very least, that "weirded out" feeling. Women can expect the same, but must also expect to have that space violated by others (read: men) who view women's bodies as some sort of public resource, subject to public oversight.
I realize that this is a larger problem than the geek community, and my conversation with Ragnell and MadMarvelGirl on Twitter suggests that geek conventions may be better than my experience would suggest. All I know is that at GenCon or Wizard World or C2E2, I encountered my fair share of people with no apparent capacity for self-awareness or self-assessment, people ignorant of basic social mores and courtesies, people with no regard for personal space--you know, creepers. Moreover, I think geek culture shields creepy people, and largely justifies, defends, or validates creepy, socially-awkward behavior.
Yes, I realize that people are different, and I'm not one to say that all social rules, standards, or mores are good or justified or reasonable. I also realize that there are actual conditions (like Asperger's) that may impact someone's social intelligence. That's really beside the point, which is that the important social rules--the ones whose violation will set people off as "creepy" and elicit that weirded-out (or threatened) feeling--exist as a result of people's basic social expectations. Violating someone's personal space or ogling them in an elevator violates the basic social contract, the basic principle that people deserve to be treated as individual persons whose desires should be respected and taken into account.
The point, to reiterate, is that people--regardless of gender or dress or attractiveness or whatever--deserve to be treated like people at all times, deserve to have their wishes taken into account at all times. Cornering someone in an elevator when they're trying to go to bed, and asking them to have sex with you, is a violation of that principle. Telling someone that they should be smiling, as if you own stock in their face, is a violation of that principle.
And people should be able to bring this kind of subject up on comic blogs and forums without being shouted down by misogynists and the clueless-and-defensive.
1. My brother likes to eat Ramen noodles. He makes enough money that eating Ramen noodles is one option out of many. I suspect, if he had no choice but to eat Ramen noodles all the time, he'd like it a lot less. There's a difference between wanting a thing, and that thing happening whether you want it to or not.
Sunday, July 03, 2011
Scroll Call
So, some time ago, I bought this truly awesome Superman wall scroll at Tim's Corner in Rock Island, IL. It hung happily above my desk in various places for years, until disappearing sometime around when I moved out of my Grad School apartment. Now, I'm not exactly hurting for Superman art to hang on my walls--in addition to the movie posters for "Superman: The Movie" and "Superman Returns" and the huge Pérez/Ross Crisis on Infinite Earths poster, I've got three other Superman movie posters and a print, all waiting for display. But it's a sweet piece of art, and Ed McGuinness is one of the best of the modern Superman artists.
So my point: if you happen to see this wall scroll on sale someplace, and you don't plan on picking it up for yourself, maybe give me a heads up? I've searched around the Internet once or twice for it, but it seems most places that might have had it have long since sold out. Doesn't mean it won't pop up in some storeroom someplace.
Thanks!
So my point: if you happen to see this wall scroll on sale someplace, and you don't plan on picking it up for yourself, maybe give me a heads up? I've searched around the Internet once or twice for it, but it seems most places that might have had it have long since sold out. Doesn't mean it won't pop up in some storeroom someplace.
Thanks!
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Walking with Superman: The Contest Update!
If my inbox is any indication, you may be interested in the results of the Walking with Superman Contest. I'll be posting the results within the next week and shipping the prizes shortly after. Just swamped with work at the moment.
Thanks for participating (and caring)!
Thanks for participating (and caring)!
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
The Big Superman Movie News
By now I'm sure you've heard the big news about Zack Snyder's Superman reboot that broke recently. Everyone's been talking about it, voicing almost-certainly-premature opinions and in many cases saying some downright awful things.
I am, of course, referring to the decision to shoot in Plano, Illinois.
Okay, it may seem like small potatoes to you that Superman is filming on some of the same locations as "Larry the Cable Guy in Witless Protection," but it means a lot to me. See, I live right near Plano. When I have to buy cheap Chinese-made merchandise, I go to the Plano Wal-Mart. I ate dinner in Plano tonight.
And I don't think I need to tell you what a fan I am of Superman.
Seriously. "Hey, Tom, we're going to film Superman in your backyard, how do you feel about that?" I may have to subscribe to Variety just for the inevitable extra-casting report. News (and possibly eventually photos!) as it develops.
Also, Amy Adams was cast as Lois Lane. I don't know that I would have ever made that pick, but I totally approve. I've liked Adams as an actress since "Enchanted," and I thought she had a great turn in a more serious role in "Doubt." I haven't seen "The Fighter" or "Julie & Julia," but I've heard similarly good things. Frankly, based on how the rest of the news about this film is shaping up, I fear that she may be too good for this movie.
Plus, her geek-cred is pretty well golden. Not only is she a "Buffy" alum, but she also has experience playing the reporter-girlfriend-of-a-superhero, since she apparently voiced Sweet Polly Purebread in the recent "Underdog" movie. Besides that, she appears to be pulling a reverse-Hatcher (previously known as a reverse-O'Toole), playing Superman's love interest after an appearance on "Smallville."
Which is why I'm settling in right now to watch Season 1, episode 8, "Craving."
I am, of course, referring to the decision to shoot in Plano, Illinois.
Okay, it may seem like small potatoes to you that Superman is filming on some of the same locations as "Larry the Cable Guy in Witless Protection," but it means a lot to me. See, I live right near Plano. When I have to buy cheap Chinese-made merchandise, I go to the Plano Wal-Mart. I ate dinner in Plano tonight.
And I don't think I need to tell you what a fan I am of Superman.
Seriously. "Hey, Tom, we're going to film Superman in your backyard, how do you feel about that?" I may have to subscribe to Variety just for the inevitable extra-casting report. News (and possibly eventually photos!) as it develops.
Also, Amy Adams was cast as Lois Lane. I don't know that I would have ever made that pick, but I totally approve. I've liked Adams as an actress since "Enchanted," and I thought she had a great turn in a more serious role in "Doubt." I haven't seen "The Fighter" or "Julie & Julia," but I've heard similarly good things. Frankly, based on how the rest of the news about this film is shaping up, I fear that she may be too good for this movie.
Plus, her geek-cred is pretty well golden. Not only is she a "Buffy" alum, but she also has experience playing the reporter-girlfriend-of-a-superhero, since she apparently voiced Sweet Polly Purebread in the recent "Underdog" movie. Besides that, she appears to be pulling a reverse-Hatcher (previously known as a reverse-O'Toole), playing Superman's love interest after an appearance on "Smallville."
Which is why I'm settling in right now to watch Season 1, episode 8, "Craving."
Saturday, March 05, 2011
Marketing!
Hey everybody, it's that time again: time for me to pare down my comic collection a little bit with a whole slew of eBay auctions. Now, while a cursory glance might show some creators and books that I've been a little down on, I do think that there's some great comics in here. Straczynski did some excellent stories in "Amazing Spider-Man," and while saying "'Green Arrow' features Kevin Smith and Brad Meltzer's best comics work" sounds like damning with faint praise, those seriously are some good comics. So check them out!
Go! Bid! Buy my comics!
- The More-Than-Complete "52"
- "1602"
- "Amazing Spider-Man" #471-519
- "Aztek: The Ultimate Man"
- "Batman: Cacophony" and "Spider-Man/Black Cat: The Evil that Men Do"
- "Dr. Strange: The Oath" and "Strange"
- "Green Arrow" #1-26
- "Identity Crisis" and "Justice League of America"
- "Justice" and "JLA/Avengers"
- "Starman" 10 TPB lot
- "Wednesday Comics"
Go! Bid! Buy my comics!
Sunday, December 19, 2010
The Bells Are Ringing
Another post eaten by this Blogger scheduling problem. Just pretend this posted yesterday at 3:00.
Usually when I talk about my personal life on the blog here, it's to give excuses about late posts, or to share something geeky and funny that happened in meatspace. This post is a little different. See, when this posts, I'll be getting married. And shortly thereafter, I'll be going on my honeymoon. Hooray!
On the blog side of things, you need not fear. Walking with Superman will continue to post daily, unless there's a serious snafu. Posts are scheduled through a day or two after the Honeymoon, and I'll be using all that time on the plane to plan some more. I might not get to comments or questions much, though, and my Twitter feed will likely continue to gather cobwebs. Such is life.
As far as the ceremony goes, I've been prepared by years of reading comics, and I totally know what to expect. I think I'll consider the shindig a success if none of the following things happen:
Usually when I talk about my personal life on the blog here, it's to give excuses about late posts, or to share something geeky and funny that happened in meatspace. This post is a little different. See, when this posts, I'll be getting married. And shortly thereafter, I'll be going on my honeymoon. Hooray!
On the blog side of things, you need not fear. Walking with Superman will continue to post daily, unless there's a serious snafu. Posts are scheduled through a day or two after the Honeymoon, and I'll be using all that time on the plane to plan some more. I might not get to comments or questions much, though, and my Twitter feed will likely continue to gather cobwebs. Such is life.
As far as the ceremony goes, I've been prepared by years of reading comics, and I totally know what to expect. I think I'll consider the shindig a success if none of the following things happen:
- My fianceé being plucked out of the timestream and all memories of and references to her erased.
- An ex-girlfriend showing up in an outfit made of leather straps to wreak havoc, fry the pastor, and try to kill us.
- Electro and/or the Spider-Slayer showing up to disrupt proceedings.
- Stan Lee and Jack Kirby being turned away at the door.
- The event being rewritten at some future point due to a deal with the Devil.
- One of us turning out to be a zombie who has hypnotized the other into going through with the wedding.
- Changes to the timeline forcing one of us to go back to the past and distracting the other long enough for them to avoid being killed prematurely.
- Our technorganic alternate future child showing up.
- My father-in-law shooting my best man.
- Our deaths at the hands of the dude who has been killing us over and over through a variety of reincarnations.
- The wedding being a clever ploy by one of us to exploit the other's mental breakdown.
- One of us turning out to be a shapeshifter.
Friday, August 27, 2010
Bottomless Nerdity
My fianceé and I have been car shopping for a little over a month. My car is getting to be pretty unreliable, and cleaning up the oil slick in the garage every couple of weeks is fairly frustrating. We'd just about given up recently, having heard little from the local agents we had out looking for us.
Until yesterday. I got the call shortly after work that they had found pretty much precisely what we'd been looking for. It was amazing. It's got almost all the features I wanted, and it's a beautiful iridescent blue. We made our down payment, and we'll be picking it up in a week or so. I'm quite excited.
So naturally I was still thinking about the car--and its gorgeous blue color--when I texted her a little later:
I'm thinking "Classy, and Relative Dimension in Space."
Until yesterday. I got the call shortly after work that they had found pretty much precisely what we'd been looking for. It was amazing. It's got almost all the features I wanted, and it's a beautiful iridescent blue. We made our down payment, and we'll be picking it up in a week or so. I'm quite excited.
So naturally I was still thinking about the car--and its gorgeous blue color--when I texted her a little later:
I'm thinking "Classy, and Relative Dimension in Space."
Sunday, August 15, 2010
"Things never were the same. Change is...it's what we get."
This post is not about Scott Pilgrim. It's not about Superman either, for that matter. It's about something much more personal.
My comic shop, Stand-Up Comics, is closing.
The news came pretty unexpectedly for me. Though I knew business hadn't been great, I didn't know it was nearly this bad. I suspect it's largely due to the economy--when you've got to choose between comics and food, eventually food wins. I haven't bought comics in over a month for precisely that reason. Things suck all over, and it's hard for any small business in a niche market to stay solvent in the current climate.
I've applied superlatives to Stand-Up Comics in the past, and I stand by them. It is seriously the best comic shop I've ever been to, and brother have I been to a lot of comic shops. They have a wide selection of comics, displayed in a sensible, organized manner, and with excellent discounts. They offer more than just geek paraphernalia; while most comic shops' attempts at diversification usually lead to gaming materials and used paperbacks and porn, Stand-Up Comics brought in local bands and held comedy shows. The shop is spacious and well-lit, welcoming and friendly. My fianceé always appreciated the "girlfriend couch," a place where she could sit and relax while I browsed, rather than following me around like, in her words, "a lost puppy," given that she's a lot less interested in the material than I am. That's a lot more than most stores offer their customers' significant others, or girls in general, for that matter.
Stand-Up Comics is still going to be around for a few more weeks, though you won't be finding the most recent books on the shelves this coming Wednesday. Still, everything in the store will be marked down, and it sounds like there might be some end-of-an-era events in that time as well. I don't know if I can make it to the shop in the next few weeks--I'm living pretty lean until my next paycheck or two--so I'm asking my readers for a favor: Drop by. Stop in for everyone who can't, for the people like me who are too damn broke to help out good friends. Buy some books and boards and boxes, not out of charity, not out of pity, but out of recognition. Stand-Up Comics tried new things. They aren't a conventional comic shop, and they're better because of it.
And I don't think you can say they failed. I've seen small businesses with much wider appeal than comic shops flare up and die away within weeks or months around me; when I drive around my town, I see dozens of empty storefronts, some of which have never actually been rented, others the remains of short-lived businesses from just the last few years. It doesn't help that there are several other comic shops in the same general vicinity, or that Chicagoland is home to one of the largest comic shop conglomerates in the country. That Stand-Up Comics managed to stay open and popular for nearly five years, run by a bunch of comic fans with no formal business training, is nothing short of fantastic. The owners should be proud, and I know they are.
It's bittersweet, because the last thing I want to see is my friends forced into bankruptcy by a dying business, but I also hate losing a shop I've patronized faithfully, if remotely, since they opened. I've never had a comic shop close on me before. Today, I filled out the subscription form for that same conglomerate, and it felt like defeat.
But I'll get over it, and I'll move on. All of Stand-Up's customers will, and the owners are already moving on to new things. Sometimes change hurts. And often, change sucks. But change is what we get.
So good luck to Eric, Pat, Brian, and the rest of the Stand-Up Comics crew and customer base. I'll be seeing them around, and you should be seeing them too. I know I have readers scattered all over Chicagoland and northern Indiana, I've seen the referral logs. Take a trip down to 3429 Ridge Road in Lansing, IL, and show a little love for a shop that dared to try something more than Magic: the Gathering and Pokémon tournaments. In a world where comic shops are all too often run by people like this jackass, I think actual, quality shops should be rewarded. It's in our interest as customers to encourage comic shops to be as open and friendly and innovative as Stand-Up Comics, because it's one of few antidotes against the increasing insularity and homogeneity of comic fandom. Like it or not, comics are dependent on the direct market, and the direct market is dependent on new customers. And you can only get so far in that direction by stocking up on board games and D&D books.
I'm going to stop gushing and ranting, I think. You get the idea. Now get on down to the best damn comic shop in the multiverse before it, like all good things, comes to an end.
My comic shop, Stand-Up Comics, is closing.
The news came pretty unexpectedly for me. Though I knew business hadn't been great, I didn't know it was nearly this bad. I suspect it's largely due to the economy--when you've got to choose between comics and food, eventually food wins. I haven't bought comics in over a month for precisely that reason. Things suck all over, and it's hard for any small business in a niche market to stay solvent in the current climate.
I've applied superlatives to Stand-Up Comics in the past, and I stand by them. It is seriously the best comic shop I've ever been to, and brother have I been to a lot of comic shops. They have a wide selection of comics, displayed in a sensible, organized manner, and with excellent discounts. They offer more than just geek paraphernalia; while most comic shops' attempts at diversification usually lead to gaming materials and used paperbacks and porn, Stand-Up Comics brought in local bands and held comedy shows. The shop is spacious and well-lit, welcoming and friendly. My fianceé always appreciated the "girlfriend couch," a place where she could sit and relax while I browsed, rather than following me around like, in her words, "a lost puppy," given that she's a lot less interested in the material than I am. That's a lot more than most stores offer their customers' significant others, or girls in general, for that matter.
Stand-Up Comics is still going to be around for a few more weeks, though you won't be finding the most recent books on the shelves this coming Wednesday. Still, everything in the store will be marked down, and it sounds like there might be some end-of-an-era events in that time as well. I don't know if I can make it to the shop in the next few weeks--I'm living pretty lean until my next paycheck or two--so I'm asking my readers for a favor: Drop by. Stop in for everyone who can't, for the people like me who are too damn broke to help out good friends. Buy some books and boards and boxes, not out of charity, not out of pity, but out of recognition. Stand-Up Comics tried new things. They aren't a conventional comic shop, and they're better because of it.
And I don't think you can say they failed. I've seen small businesses with much wider appeal than comic shops flare up and die away within weeks or months around me; when I drive around my town, I see dozens of empty storefronts, some of which have never actually been rented, others the remains of short-lived businesses from just the last few years. It doesn't help that there are several other comic shops in the same general vicinity, or that Chicagoland is home to one of the largest comic shop conglomerates in the country. That Stand-Up Comics managed to stay open and popular for nearly five years, run by a bunch of comic fans with no formal business training, is nothing short of fantastic. The owners should be proud, and I know they are.
It's bittersweet, because the last thing I want to see is my friends forced into bankruptcy by a dying business, but I also hate losing a shop I've patronized faithfully, if remotely, since they opened. I've never had a comic shop close on me before. Today, I filled out the subscription form for that same conglomerate, and it felt like defeat.
But I'll get over it, and I'll move on. All of Stand-Up's customers will, and the owners are already moving on to new things. Sometimes change hurts. And often, change sucks. But change is what we get.
So good luck to Eric, Pat, Brian, and the rest of the Stand-Up Comics crew and customer base. I'll be seeing them around, and you should be seeing them too. I know I have readers scattered all over Chicagoland and northern Indiana, I've seen the referral logs. Take a trip down to 3429 Ridge Road in Lansing, IL, and show a little love for a shop that dared to try something more than Magic: the Gathering and Pokémon tournaments. In a world where comic shops are all too often run by people like this jackass, I think actual, quality shops should be rewarded. It's in our interest as customers to encourage comic shops to be as open and friendly and innovative as Stand-Up Comics, because it's one of few antidotes against the increasing insularity and homogeneity of comic fandom. Like it or not, comics are dependent on the direct market, and the direct market is dependent on new customers. And you can only get so far in that direction by stocking up on board games and D&D books.
I'm going to stop gushing and ranting, I think. You get the idea. Now get on down to the best damn comic shop in the multiverse before it, like all good things, comes to an end.
Friday, September 02, 2005
ORGANIC !$%&@##! WEB-SHOOTERS????
I just finished reading the excellent trade "Spider-Man/Human Torch: I'm With Stupid," and was clued into a recent development in the Spider-verse.
No, not keeping his mask on with his stickiness, something I've always wondered about. After all, he can stick to a wall with his butt, but it never occurs to him that his face can stick to stuff too? And his mask, no less? With the frequency that Spidey loses masks, you'd think he would have realized that by now.
Spidey has organic web-shooters now. Because he has them in the movie.
Well, gee golly jiminy-f***. Why not make that change over in "Ultimate Spider-Man," the story the movie's more based on? Why make the change in the comics that the kids *aren't* reading?
Jesus f***ing Christ. I cannot believe this. How did they explain this? Did he wake up one morning, scratch his butt, and squirt webbing down his backside? Because I want to see that issue, that's freaking hilarious.
And, apparently, he's now to Spiders what Aquaman is to fish, more or less. He can "receive primal messages" from insects and the like. Why insects? Because arachnid-based heroes somehow understand their prey? Hey, maybe every animal-based hero should have the ability to communicate with their totem animal. Vulture could settle down on a park bench to feed pigeons, Rhino could move to Africa to commune with his thick-skinned bretheren, and Dr. Octopus would drown in a tragic attempt to wed a friendly squid.
But there's more! Green Lantern now asks street lamps what they're knowin', having come to watch their flowers growin'! Batman annoys the Justice League with his frequent use of echolocation, and wait 'til you see the counsel's conversations with Ol' Scratch in "The Daredevil and Daniel Webster."
The justification for these changes? From Newsarama, referring to Tom Brevoort's comments, "at this point in time, a larger audience is more familiar with a Spider-Man with organic webshooters than without."
Well, damn. A larger audience is also familiar with a Spider-Man who isn't married to Mary Jane and is a college student, than the high school teacher who bedded the supermodel. A larger audience is also familiar with a dead Doc Ock. Do we rewind the last twenty years of Spidey history and kill one of his greatest villains to line the comics up with the movies?
Last I checked, the movie was based on the comic, not the other way 'round.
But I'd like to see the numbers. I want you to add up all the living people who have ever picked up and read a Spider-Man comic since 1962. 45 years worth of readers worldwide. Now, add to that the people who haven't picked up a comic, but have watched one of the Spider-Man cartoon series (I do this to remove overlap).
Now take the number of people who have seen the Spider-Man movies, but have never seen a Spider-Man comic or cartoon episode. I'm willing to bet the numbers aren't as different as people would have you believe. Spidey's been popular for two damn generations, the movies have been out for what, four years? I call shenanigans. Shenanigans!
And to make the change in the core Spidey titles! It's been what, ten, fifteen years comic time since he got his powers, and now he suddenly further mutates to be able to produce a substance that he himself invented? Isn't that a little convenient? They could do this a bit more believably over in Ultimate, where Pete's dad invented the webbing. Who knows, maybe working with chemicals caused his dad to develop a genetic mutation, etc. Why in the regular titles? Why in the ones that are, in no way, marketed toward the people who would be coming in from the movies with no comic background?
Let me tell you, Mr. Brevoort, there's a much greater number of people buying regular Spider-Man comics who know about mechanical web-shooters than people who don't.
See, what Spidey's writers have forgotten for several years is that Spider-Man is not a totally physical hero. Pete's brain made some valiant attempts to get into the plot under J. Michael Straczynski, but then some super-powerful Morbius wannabe would show up and start another epic fistfight.
Peter Parker is a genius, a scientist, and a little of a renaissance man (that boy can sew!). When it became apparent that he might need webbing of some sort, he whipped it up with a chemistry set. When he realized he'd need to carry extra webbing, he made a belt with extra cartridges. When they needed a convenient excuse to get Spidey away from his webs, some powerful villain would crush the shooters on his wrists. It was a convenient plot device, but more, it was a constant reminder that Spider-Man's greatest powers are his intellect and ingenuity.
After all, what else does he have? He's strong, but there are others who are much stronger. He's agile, but there are others who are more agile and faster, to boot. His only unique powers are stickiness (oh, sorry Nightcrawler, nevermind), and a spider-sense that warns him of impending doom. He wouldn't even make the cut for the Legion of Super-Heroes, by their 1960s entrance standards.
But he's smart, and that's what counts with Spider-Man. He can think himself out of situations when he can't punch his way out. His webbing was a constant, active reminder of that.
Not so, anymore. Why? Because this little change will apparently make Spider-Man more marketable? Bull. If Joe Average picks up a Spider-Man comic, he's going to have a harder time understanding why Peter is married to Mary Jane, why Aunt May knows his secret, and why the Parkers are living in the Avengers Mansion, than he is understanding that Pete has machines on his writs that shoot webs. Is it because the change adds to the character? I submit that it is not. Is it because it'll have major ramifications on Peter's average life? I think not. They admit that no one's really made a big deal of Peter's webbing in recent years (and I have noticed that few seem to remember that it dissolves after an hour).
Then why? Because it'll anger the long-time fans (hey, as Bill Willingham says, any reaction, good or bad, is equal. Right?), and because it's easier to write a quasi-mystic or thinks-with-fists character than a genuinely smart one. Quasi-mystics can be as naïve and inept as a plot dictates, and still be believable. Fist-thinkers can be painted broadly with the "brash and impatient" stroke as the plot requires (see: Wolverine). Smart characters don't have an excuse. Spider-Man made mistakes all the time when he started out, but that's 'cause he was a rookie. Now he's had a decade of in-comic experience, coupled with an intellect second only to Reed Richards (Sorry, Doom, you're number three. Although there is that fetching Hank McCoy fella...), he doesn't have an excuse to make the dumb mistakes that plots might dictate.
But if they make him a brash fist-thinker or a quasi-mystic who talks to spiders, that's like using plot hole putty. A writer doesn't have to work nearly as hard as he would to imagine how a super-genius might get himself out of a situation. Let the plot dictate the characterization.
Well, I call it crap. Plot-necessitated characterization is reserved for the extras, the museum curators and stereotypical scientists and grizzled cops who are there to give exposition and provide cannon fodder or the occasional emotional gravitas. Plot-dictated character doesn't work with established characters, because it requires the characters to act contrary to their nature to make the plot feasible.
So, if we remove Spider-Man's intellect, then we don't have to worry about making him look like the "world's dumbest smart guy" like Mr. Fantastic, we can let the plot dictate why he's a moron. Then, we don't look like lazy writers.
Spider-scribes, your shortcomings are showing.
No, not keeping his mask on with his stickiness, something I've always wondered about. After all, he can stick to a wall with his butt, but it never occurs to him that his face can stick to stuff too? And his mask, no less? With the frequency that Spidey loses masks, you'd think he would have realized that by now.
Spidey has organic web-shooters now. Because he has them in the movie.
Well, gee golly jiminy-f***. Why not make that change over in "Ultimate Spider-Man," the story the movie's more based on? Why make the change in the comics that the kids *aren't* reading?
Jesus f***ing Christ. I cannot believe this. How did they explain this? Did he wake up one morning, scratch his butt, and squirt webbing down his backside? Because I want to see that issue, that's freaking hilarious.
And, apparently, he's now to Spiders what Aquaman is to fish, more or less. He can "receive primal messages" from insects and the like. Why insects? Because arachnid-based heroes somehow understand their prey? Hey, maybe every animal-based hero should have the ability to communicate with their totem animal. Vulture could settle down on a park bench to feed pigeons, Rhino could move to Africa to commune with his thick-skinned bretheren, and Dr. Octopus would drown in a tragic attempt to wed a friendly squid.
But there's more! Green Lantern now asks street lamps what they're knowin', having come to watch their flowers growin'! Batman annoys the Justice League with his frequent use of echolocation, and wait 'til you see the counsel's conversations with Ol' Scratch in "The Daredevil and Daniel Webster."
The justification for these changes? From Newsarama, referring to Tom Brevoort's comments, "at this point in time, a larger audience is more familiar with a Spider-Man with organic webshooters than without."
Well, damn. A larger audience is also familiar with a Spider-Man who isn't married to Mary Jane and is a college student, than the high school teacher who bedded the supermodel. A larger audience is also familiar with a dead Doc Ock. Do we rewind the last twenty years of Spidey history and kill one of his greatest villains to line the comics up with the movies?
Last I checked, the movie was based on the comic, not the other way 'round.
But I'd like to see the numbers. I want you to add up all the living people who have ever picked up and read a Spider-Man comic since 1962. 45 years worth of readers worldwide. Now, add to that the people who haven't picked up a comic, but have watched one of the Spider-Man cartoon series (I do this to remove overlap).
Now take the number of people who have seen the Spider-Man movies, but have never seen a Spider-Man comic or cartoon episode. I'm willing to bet the numbers aren't as different as people would have you believe. Spidey's been popular for two damn generations, the movies have been out for what, four years? I call shenanigans. Shenanigans!
And to make the change in the core Spidey titles! It's been what, ten, fifteen years comic time since he got his powers, and now he suddenly further mutates to be able to produce a substance that he himself invented? Isn't that a little convenient? They could do this a bit more believably over in Ultimate, where Pete's dad invented the webbing. Who knows, maybe working with chemicals caused his dad to develop a genetic mutation, etc. Why in the regular titles? Why in the ones that are, in no way, marketed toward the people who would be coming in from the movies with no comic background?
Let me tell you, Mr. Brevoort, there's a much greater number of people buying regular Spider-Man comics who know about mechanical web-shooters than people who don't.
See, what Spidey's writers have forgotten for several years is that Spider-Man is not a totally physical hero. Pete's brain made some valiant attempts to get into the plot under J. Michael Straczynski, but then some super-powerful Morbius wannabe would show up and start another epic fistfight.
Peter Parker is a genius, a scientist, and a little of a renaissance man (that boy can sew!). When it became apparent that he might need webbing of some sort, he whipped it up with a chemistry set. When he realized he'd need to carry extra webbing, he made a belt with extra cartridges. When they needed a convenient excuse to get Spidey away from his webs, some powerful villain would crush the shooters on his wrists. It was a convenient plot device, but more, it was a constant reminder that Spider-Man's greatest powers are his intellect and ingenuity.
After all, what else does he have? He's strong, but there are others who are much stronger. He's agile, but there are others who are more agile and faster, to boot. His only unique powers are stickiness (oh, sorry Nightcrawler, nevermind), and a spider-sense that warns him of impending doom. He wouldn't even make the cut for the Legion of Super-Heroes, by their 1960s entrance standards.
But he's smart, and that's what counts with Spider-Man. He can think himself out of situations when he can't punch his way out. His webbing was a constant, active reminder of that.
Not so, anymore. Why? Because this little change will apparently make Spider-Man more marketable? Bull. If Joe Average picks up a Spider-Man comic, he's going to have a harder time understanding why Peter is married to Mary Jane, why Aunt May knows his secret, and why the Parkers are living in the Avengers Mansion, than he is understanding that Pete has machines on his writs that shoot webs. Is it because the change adds to the character? I submit that it is not. Is it because it'll have major ramifications on Peter's average life? I think not. They admit that no one's really made a big deal of Peter's webbing in recent years (and I have noticed that few seem to remember that it dissolves after an hour).
Then why? Because it'll anger the long-time fans (hey, as Bill Willingham says, any reaction, good or bad, is equal. Right?), and because it's easier to write a quasi-mystic or thinks-with-fists character than a genuinely smart one. Quasi-mystics can be as naïve and inept as a plot dictates, and still be believable. Fist-thinkers can be painted broadly with the "brash and impatient" stroke as the plot requires (see: Wolverine). Smart characters don't have an excuse. Spider-Man made mistakes all the time when he started out, but that's 'cause he was a rookie. Now he's had a decade of in-comic experience, coupled with an intellect second only to Reed Richards (Sorry, Doom, you're number three. Although there is that fetching Hank McCoy fella...), he doesn't have an excuse to make the dumb mistakes that plots might dictate.
But if they make him a brash fist-thinker or a quasi-mystic who talks to spiders, that's like using plot hole putty. A writer doesn't have to work nearly as hard as he would to imagine how a super-genius might get himself out of a situation. Let the plot dictate the characterization.
Well, I call it crap. Plot-necessitated characterization is reserved for the extras, the museum curators and stereotypical scientists and grizzled cops who are there to give exposition and provide cannon fodder or the occasional emotional gravitas. Plot-dictated character doesn't work with established characters, because it requires the characters to act contrary to their nature to make the plot feasible.
So, if we remove Spider-Man's intellect, then we don't have to worry about making him look like the "world's dumbest smart guy" like Mr. Fantastic, we can let the plot dictate why he's a moron. Then, we don't look like lazy writers.
Spider-scribes, your shortcomings are showing.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)