Glenn Walker is a writer who knows pop culture. He loves, hates, and lives pop culture. He knows too freaking much about pop culture, and here's where he talks about it all: movies, music, comics, television, and the rest... Welcome to Hell.
Hey Kids, Comics! is a collection of essays, compiled by Rob Kelly, about the love and nostalgia of comics. These stories, by media and industry professionals like Alan Brennert, Glen Weldon, Evan Narcisse, Steve Englehart, J.M. DeMattieis, Paul Kupperberg, Elisabeth Rappe, Sholly Fisch, Doug Slack, and Roxanna Meta, among many others, are experiences and remembrances of the joy of comics.
I love this book, and I'm so proud of my friend for putting this together. I can't recommend Hey Kids, Comics! enough. You can check out Ray Cornwall's and my interview with Rob Kelly on The GAR! Podcast here, and you can buy the book here. Check it out.
Continuing a two day tradition of promoting other folks' blogs, but guaranteed cool folks and their cool blogs, I have an announcement about The Aquaman Shrine.
February on The Shrine will be Mera Month. For those of you who read the comics, watch the animated series, or just have to live with those of us who do, I don't have to introduce one of the sexiest redheads in comics. For those of you not in the know, Mera is Aquaman's wife, the queen of an otherdimensional water world who gave up her crown to rule beside Aquaman in Atlantis.
Mera has been around since the early 1960s, has appeared in numerous animated versions, and in the new DC Comics reboot has even been a member of the Justice League. Check out The Aquaman Shrine throughout February to learn more about the sea queen.
Rob Kelly is a guy who understands passion, and the concept of the phrase "labor of love." Not only is he the man behind The Aquaman Shrine, he is also the writer of the smashing new webcomic Ace Kilroy, along with artist Dan O'Connor. This is his newest labor of love, and with just a few clicks of the mouse, you can help make this adventure last a good long time. It's worth it!
Ace Kilroy is a loving tribute to the high adventure comic strips of yesteryear. My first glance at the work, which started on Halloween this year, conjured memories of Steve Canyon, and sure enough, that's one of the strip's inspirations. I have fond memories of the newspaper strips as a kid, reading their adventures in the black and white dailies and then in full color on Sunday - and this is the method of webcomic Ace Kilroy.
The man, Ace Kilroy, is the spitting image of Clark Gable, and a classic soldier of fortune in the late 1930s. Summoned by President Roosevelt to combat the monsters of our childhood like Dracula, Frankenstein, and the Wolf Man, who might now be working with Hitler's sinister Third Reich. It's clean cut but gritty action with a square-jawed hero facing off against the solid evils of monsters and Nazis. Really, Ace Kilroy is everything you want in an old-fashioned (and that's a good thing) adventure comic. It's good versus evil, where the good guys wear white and the bad guys wear black. You know who to root for and you know who to boo and hiss. Like I said, it's a good thing.
Rob Kelly has an extensive background studying both comics and film, giving his sequential storytelling flow and cinematic flair. Dan O'Connor has an artistic style that perfectly matches the era and feeling needed for the strip. Together, they make the noir adventure breathe and jump off the page. Their Ace Kilroy really is a 1940s adventure movie and/or comic (take your pick, it's both) come to life. Less than two weeks in, I am hooked.
And Rob and Dan are doing this great old-fashioned comic strip with a twist of contemporary internet promotion, and also using Kickstarter to fund it. So if you dig Ace Kilroy, become a backer! Find Ace Kilroy at the following links:
The All Things Fun! New Comics Vidcast is shot live in a real comics and gaming store in West Berlin, NJ - All Things Fun! - co-hosts Allison (Con Voodoo) Eckel and Glenn (Pro Voodoo) Walker (giver of leis Ed Evans jumps in once or twice) discuss the new comics out this week in two fun video segments, now in high definition, and also available on YouTube. See it here!
The first segment includes discussion of the following topics: Gifts from Hawaii, The New DC 52 including Geoff Johns' fantastic Aquaman #1, also Peter Milligan's Justice League Dark #1, Francis Manapul's Flash #1, Savage Hawkman #1, Blackhawks #1, Gail Simone's Fury of Firestorm #1 and Superman #1.
The discussion continues in segment two including: The Avengers and orange comic book covers, Mighty Thor #6, FF #9, Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #2, Spider-Island and the rest of the Marvels, Brilliant #1 and Castle: Deadly Storm both by Brian Michael Bendis, I Vampire #1, Batman The Dark Knight #1, New Guardians #1, Teen Titans #1, Superman HeroClix, Star Trek Fleet Captains, a million trades, and much discussion of Ron Marz' Voodoo #1.
This week will be a historic week for fans of DC Comics' reigning Sea King - Aquaman! Not only is it the launch of his new ongoing series by the all-star creative team of Geoff Johns, Ivan Reis and Joe Prado, but Aquaman #1 also just happens to coincide with the King of the Seven Seas' 70th anniversary of his first appearance in More Fun Comics #73!
The Aquaman Shrine will be marking this special event in a unique way on SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 25th by throwing a birthday party for Aquaman exactly 70 years to-the-day after More Fun Comics #73 hit the stands for sale on September 25, 1941!
Who will be attending this party? Dan Abnett, Tony Bedard, Kurt Busiek, Nick Cardy, J.M. DeMatteis, Ramona Fradon, Pat Gleason, Dan Jurgens, Paul Levitz, and Joe Prado are just a few of the many creators who will be visiting the Shrine on Sunday to wish Aquaman a Happy 70th and to share their unique perspective with fans, friends, and family of Arthur Curry. Special surprises will be in store and this event will be fun for comic book fans of all ages!
And that’s not all! In addition, the Shrine will be following up the big 70th birthday party with EXCLUSIVE CONTENT from Aquaman artist Ivan Reis every day leading up to the release of Aquaman #1 on September 28!
I'm a big fan of my friend Rob Kelly's Aquaman Shrine (as well as both Rob and Aquaman separately too), and recently he, along with the Irredeemable Shag of the Firestorm Fan site got together to do a podcast about their mutual loves of the characters Aquaman and Firestorm - The Fire and Water Podcast.
The first episode is an entertaining voyage into the hows and whys of doing blogs devoted to Aquaman and Firestorm, the new DC 52 and what it has in store for their favorite characters and just some really fun chemistry that doesn't often happen in many podcasts. Rob and Shag are a good team and provide a really good listen. And it's not just Aquaman and Firestorm talk here, there's a bit of comics history as well and even some love for the classic Mark Evanier/Dan Spiegle Blackhawk, always a plus for me. Recommended, check it out here or on iTunes.
In case you missed it earlier tonight, here's the live vidcast from the All Things Fun! Midnight Release Party and Sale, featuring the many origins of the Justice League of America, Flashpoint #5, Justice League #1, and Rob Kelly from The Aquaman Shrine.
My friend Rob Kelly is a guy with a lot of passion. Whether it’s his work or his hobbies, he puts everything he has into it. Case in point – his brainchild the Aquaman Shrine. His love and respect for the Aquaman character knows no bounds and his passion to see Aquaman get the props he deserves is phenomenal.
When the sea king, in his most classic and recognizable form, was set to return in the pages of The Brave and the Bold, Rob set up a campaign to make sure as many folks as possible were both aware of and ordered the issue. Even here at Welcome to Hell I supported the effort. Yesterday Brave and the Bold #32 came out, featuring the classic Aquaman and Jack Kirby’s The Demon, and here’s my review...
Writer J. Michael Straczynski has been rolling throughout time and space in the DC Universe with his tales in Brave and the Bold, and this issue marks the subtitle on the cover ”Lost Stories of Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow” to further ensure he wouldn’t be hindered by continuity. Sometimes the complicated soap opera mythology of comics gets in the way of telling stories. If you want to read good stories and worry about that tangled mess – JMS’ Brave and the Bold is for you.
This issue, illustrated by frequent collaborator Jesus Saiz, is no different. This done-in-one story brings the classic Aquaman together with The Demon to stop a decidedly Lovecraftian elder entity from entering our dimension. An excellent short story, “Night Gods” tells the tale of Whitford Crane who is trying to find out if he’s insane or not by digging up his friend’s grave. When captured he relates the story from his point of view. The first two pages have the feel of the old 1970s DC horror comics. I could almost see the Phantom Stranger appearing next, but instead it’s the rather odd pairing of Aquaman and the Demon. The unlikely duo get together once a year to stop this invasion of an elder god into our world, and poor Whitford is stuck in the middle. While Lovecraft is more in the Demon’s field, the focus is actually more on Aquaman. As a man of the sea himself, Crane has a healthy respect for Aquaman, and his narration lovingly paints him as the dynamic hero he is. The sea king’s underwater fighting prowess and especially his telepathic powers are displayed breathtakingly.
I agree with Rob wholeheartedly that this is the Aquaman we want, and hopefully sales on this issue should tell DC Comics how much we feel this. And even if you’re not an Aquaman fan, or even a comics fan, Brave and the Bold demonstrates what good storytelling is all about. Definitely check it out. Highly recommended.
In February DC Comics' Brave and the Bold features a tale of the classic and very-much-alive Aquaman by writer J. Michael Straczynski and artist Jesus Saiz. Friend Rob Kelly of The Aquaman Shrine is putting together an effort to let the powers that be that we want more of this, in other words – Bring Back Aquaman, the real Aquaman!
Catch Rob’s efforts here, here and especially here, with an interview with J. Michael Straczynski. And if you are in the South Jersey/Philadelphia area and would like to pre-order your copy of Brave and the Bold #32, check out All Things Fun! page here.
The newest of Rob Kelly's Family of Blogs is all about the classic 1970s television sitcom "M*A*S*H." He'll be taking a look at the series, episode by episode right from the beginning.
As a fan of Rob's blogging work, and a latecomer to the series myself (my mom was a nurse who felt offended by the portrayal of nurses on the show, so we never saw it at home), I'm looking forward to this. Check it out here.
The day was not off to a great start. With very little sleep I made the trek from 30th Street Station in Philly to Penn Station in New York. While waiting for the train, my watch broke. I mean, it was still running, it had just decided to show the wrong time and refused to be reset. Then just before New York the train had to stop “to wait for the other trains to leave the tunnel.” Now I’m not sure if we were waiting for every train in Manhattan to use the tunnel first or not, but we were stopped for well over forty-five minutes.
The original plan was to stop at the hotel first and check in (more on that later) but I was already late so I made my way to the Jacob Javitz Center first to pick up my press credentials and see what there was to see. Seeking out the press room I met a guy from Issues The Series. Go check it out, lots of fun, kinda like “Scrubs” meets Clerks.
Also saw Mighty Avengers artist Khoi Pham waiting in the professional line to get in. He called after me to say hello. I just have to reiterate my estimation that he’s the nicest guy in the comics biz. How many pros go out of their way to say hi to fans. Helluva artist, helluva guy, class act all the way. While I’m sharing plugs, I hung out with my friend Abraham from Avengers Forever and also bumped into the multi-talented Rob from the Aquaman Shrine.
The Schedule Guide for NYCC #4 has a gorgeous cover by living legend Neal Adams featuring the Green Lanterns Kilowog, Katma Tui, Kyle Rayner, Guy Gardner, John Stewart and a weird-eyed Hal Jordan. Everything is beautiful but Hal’s eyes. It’s disturbing. Maybe they’re crossed, maybe they’re not, but either way they seem to follow you around the room. Brrrr…
Inside are sneak previews of Flash: Rebirth #1 by Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver and Detective Comics #854 by Greg Rucka and J.H. Williams III. Other than Kate Kane’s pasty goth skin, the latter actually looks pretty spectacular. The former has me spellbound though. After these five pages I don’t know when the last time I’ve been so excited about a comic. It’s got it all. The Rogues, the JSA, good characterization, respectful characterization, and a Kid Flash is back? I’m going to be loving this book. I can’t wait.
I had to bail on some panels I wanted to see this afternoon to check into our hotel. What a clusterf*ck that was. First there was some confusion over whether it was on the shuttle bus route from the Javitz Center – it’s not, even though folks were telling me it was on the NYCC website. And then there was the question of the non-existent free wireless internet. By the time everything was sorted, the afternoon was gone. But I was determined to get to the Wonder Woman premiere so I went back through crazed taxis and rush hour traffic to get there.
It was well worth it. Also had one of the Javitz Center’s famous (or is it infamous?) hot dogs and saw the CAG Awards as well. I’ll end with a quote I heard as I was leaving the Javitz, “How do the cabs know to stop and pick us up?” Hmmm... and I thought I was out of my element here.
Artist Paul Norris, best known as the co-creator of Aquaman, has died at age 93, according to DC Comics.
"Paul Norris was one of the quiet, dedicated artists who sustained comics through the decades," said Paul Levitz, DC Comics president and publisher. "His most important contribution to DC was long before I was born, but it was my pleasure to reconnect him to DC and Aquaman."
Born in 1914, Norris worked as a cartoonist for the Dayton Daily News before beginning his career in comic books in 1940, when he started freelancing for Prize Publications on features including Yank and Doodle and Futureman. Norris moved to DC Comics in 1941, where he introduced Aquaman in More Fun Comics #73. After his stay on the Aquaman feature ended, he moved on to other features, including The Sandman and Johnny Quick.
After serving in the Army, Norris joined King Features, where he contributed to comic strips including Flash Gordon, Secret Agent X-9 and Jungle Jim. He took over writing and drawing the Brick Bradford strip in 1952 and continued drawing it through 1987, establishing a reputation for never missing a deadline. In the 1960s and 70s, Norris also drew comics for Western Publishing including Tarzan of the Apes and Magnus, Robot Fighter.
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