Mixed Bag

Going to be trying some new things here on the blog including these "mixed bag" posts. The basic idea is that i have a few things to talk about but not in depth enough to justify having their own posts.

Greg Rucka is leaving DC.

So what? No really, cause people are freaking about this and I don't think it's a big deal. No mistake Rucka's a good writer but it was made pretty these last few months that without J.H. Williams III his Detective Comics were mediocre, and I'm sure DC can find plenty of people to write mediocre Batwoman and Question stories (it just so happens that I can write mediocre Batstories and am available). Really fans of Rucka should be glad that he can make money doing his creator-owned stuff. As for fans of Batwoman, J.H. Williams III still works for DC. Which is good news for any DC fan whether they give a crap about Kate Kane or not.

I'm really excited for Scott Pilgrim

Mainly for July 20, 2010 which is when the sixth and final volume of the comic phenomenon comes out. Oh, I guess there's also a movie too:



Okay so that actually does look pretty fucking awesome. I think I'm coming to terms with the fact that the movies going to be it's own thing and I'll try and judge it accordingly rather then constantly think of the stuff they don't include. It won't be easy since my love for the comics is as deep and true as Batman's love for perching on gargoyles.

Speaking of things I have an unreasonably high quantity of love for...



Sylvester Stallone alone is enough to get me to see almost any movie, add in Jason Statham, Jet Li, and a cameo from almost every big action star of the 80s (Segal was suppose to be in it but turned it down at the last minute due to some drama with one of the producers) and that is box office gold. Well not really but I'm excited. Before you scratch your head too hard, Sly's last two movies, Rocky Balboa and Rambo (4), were fantastic. Both were the best entries into their respective franchises since the first films and both were written and directed by Stallone, just like The Expendables.

So... I never got around to those reviews.

So yeah, I'm sorry about that. I know I said I write up some full reviews of Up in the Air and Planet Hulk (the movie) and then I totally didn't. Now it's been awhile and the details are beginning to get a little fuzzy so I'm just going to do some quick reviews.

Up in the Air

This is a really, really good movie. Clooney has been on an absolute tear lately and the last two movie of his I saw, this and The Fantastic Mr. Fox, were fucking great. This movie marks the high point in the carrier of Jason Reitman by being better then the much celebrated Juno or the darker, lesser known, Thank You For Smoking. There's also brief appearances from Jason Bateman, J.K. Simmons, Zach Galifianakis, and Sam Elliott who are all cool dudes. Clooney plays a man with a job that requires him to travel almost year round solely to fire people. He lives out of a single piece of luggage, going from airport to hotel room and back unburdened by possessions, guilt, family, friends, or love. So yes it has some drama mixed in their but it's also really funny. It's probably the best film I've seen in at least a year (although The Fantastic Mr. Fox was great) so if you haven't seen it, see it.

Planet Hulk (movie)

I really like the comic this film was based on so, as we touched on earlier, it's hard for me not to compare the two. The real lacking of the movie, even if I didn't know the more fleshed out comic, is that it's way too short. It's 81 minutes long, not even a full hour and a half. That's fine for some stories but this is an epic tale of slaves, messiahs, aliens, gladiators, wars, and rebellions. It's just too much tale for 81 minutes. That being said, it's still pretty enjoyable. The core story is still there and it's still good as the enslaved Hulk fights his way to freedom only to find himself serving as a religious and political leader in a revolt against a tyrant king. A story made even better by the additions of various monsters, aliens, and robots. Most things could be made better with such additions. The one thing that does really elevate the movie is the soundtrack, which is sweet. The voice acting is good and the music is epic. Guy Michelmore scored the film and hats off to the dude because it was just about perfect. It's one thing that the comic, by the very nature of being a comic and, you know, not having a soundtrack, can't match. Would still recommend you read the book but if that's not your thing the movies not a bad way to kill 81 minutes.

I'm giving Buffy the Vampire slayer one last try.

I mentioned before that despite loving Firefly, Dr. Horrible, and Whedon's X-Men I just could get into Buffy. My attempts before basically consisted of catching a few episodes on FX and being unable to forgive it for being about vampires and not featuring Alucard (Hellsing), or D (Vampire Hunter D), or even Blade (Blade). Well I recently discovered that Netflix had season one streaming so I thought what the hell, I'll give it one last go. Last night I watched a couple episodes and live twitted my thoughts. If your interested I'm @egseitz, link. It has it's moments but I'm really not sure I can make through 7 seasons of this.

I'm watching Naruto again.

I had stopped because of filler. Once I catch back up I'll probably start posting weekly reviews. Likewise I stopped watching Bleach last time they went into filler mode so if anyone would be so kind as to alert me when real episodes start again that'd be great.

Speaking of letting me know things...

2010 Comments Contest!

So I got a comment on my last post from comic writer/reviewer Alex Zelban largely, I think, because I said he was a cool dude. So I have decreed that the next four people to comment on the blog (any post, new or old) will receive official 'cool dude' status from me, your humble blogger. That's right, I will publicly acknowledge you as a cool dude or dudette. Enter today!

...by commenting.

-egs

Named as an official cool dude or dudette, think of how jealous your friends will be...if you had friends.