More free comics! This time from Marvel

Marvel has added a bunch of comics to their digital comics offering, including quite a few #1s. Ever wondered if She-Hulk is any good? You can check out the first issue online! Marvel's leading the charge with the digital comics, and hopefully the other publishers will follow suit with more online comics.

My picks out of Marvel's current digital offering are "Runaways" #1 by Brian K. Vaughan (awesome series, and kid-friendly),"Astonishing X-Men" #1 by Firefly/Buffy helmer Joss Whedon (the best X-title out there right now), "Captain America" #1 by Ed Brubaker (I'll read anything he writes), and "What If Magneto Had Formed The X-Men...?" (because you can never read enough What If...? storylines).

There's been a lot of talk online about how the big publishers should start offering their comics through iTunes or some other central delivery model, and I think they're right. There are plenty of people out there who'd by them... or even subscribe to them. I think it's a great idea, and one that DC, Marvel, Dark Horse, Image, etc. should all jump on or else they're gonna end up missing the boat, just like the music industry did with digital music.

I gotta say though... I wouldn't read the digital comics for the titles I really enjoy. There's no substitute for having an issue in your hands while you read it. Same goes for any type of book.

Egon was wrong. Print isn't dead. Although, he WAS right about the atomic weight of Cobalt...

Free comic!!

The first issue of "Ex Machina", an ongoing series from Wildstorm (a division of DC Comics) is currently available online for free. And it's completely legal! The download is a pdf, so be sure you have the latest version of Adobe Reader installed.

Ex Machina is about the new mayor of New York, Mayor Mitchell Hunderd, and follows him through his term in office. It just so happens that Hundred used to be a superhero called The Great Machine. His powers? He can talk to machines and get them to do what he wants them to. The Wildstorm site is advertising this series as "super-hero adventure meets political thriller" or "the science fiction action of Unbreakable collides with the fast-paced political intrigue of The West Wing." I find that this series really is more political rather than superhero-oriented, as it does contain many allegories to current US politics.

I probably didn't do it justice in the above descriptions, so here's what I suggest: download the comic and spend 15mins at work looking it over. What could it hurt? You might just like it, and it'll help you procrastinate from doing your expense report.

Ex Machina is written by Brian K. Vaughan and penciled by Tony Harris. It's an exceptional series and this issue is a very good read. If you like it, buy the TPBs. The first 3 collections are already out and worth reading.

Futurama is laughing at me

Quick background info: I'm a space fan. I'm also a sci-fi fan, but here we're talking about outer space, specifically manned spaceflight. From the Earth to the Moon was what started it all for me, and I went on to read any book I could find on the subject of human beings going into space, the culmination of which was the moon landings from 1969-1972.

Now to the matter at hand: I'm new to Futurama, but I'm really into it now (please save your outrage on my being late to the game). So, yesterday I was watching the episode of Futurama called "The Series Has Landed" in which the gang goes to the moon to deliver a package. Hilarity ensues and they end up being chased across the moonscape by a crazed moon-farmer. They end up hiding out in the first, and long-lost, lunar lander (the one Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin used in '69).

This was a problem for me. I know it's a cartoon, but this was a blatant mistake. Only the bottom half of the lunar lander is still there, ie. the legs. The top half is what Armstrong and Aldrin took off in so that they could return to Earth. The same half that they took off in was then jetisoned from the command module, presumably into orbit, before re-entering the atmosphere.

Yeah, I know. You're reading this and saying "GEEK!" And again, I know it's a cartoon so I let it go while still feeling high-and-mighty and overall quite superior. So imagine my surprise when, during a final scene in the lander, Leela leans forward and behind her we see a plaque that reads "Lander returned to this site by the Historical Sticklers Society."

To all of you at Futurama: you've had your laugh, and now I feel stupid. At the same time though, I'm very impressed with your skills. 1-0 to you.

It's Damon Lindelof's grocery list

For those of you who can relate to my earlier post about crazy Lost fans, here's a quick update:

The guy who asked me if I wanted to know what the diagram on the blast-doors meant... yeah, he walked into my office late last week and asked if I wanted him to forward me FULL TRANSCRIPTS OF WHAT'S BEING WHISPERED IN THE JUNGLE!! Not only can I not imagine spending the time reading these, but it kills me to think of how long it took someone to put together! I'm as lazy as the next cat, but there's got to be something better to do with your time, people!

Now listen carefully as my head explodes.

This trailer has been approved for all audiences

I just went and saw Inside Man at my local theater. Really good. Check it out. But that's not the reason for my post.

Before the movie, I saw the preview for Flight 93, the Paul Greengrass film about United Flight 93 and the heroism of the passengers aboard that flight on Sept. 11th, 2001. We all remember the story of Flight 93, and we all have varying opinions on whether or not it's too soon to see films about 9/11. I have an opinion on this matter, but that's not the subject of this post either.

What I'm going to do is tell you what I thought about the trailer itself. Here it is in a nutshell: I wasn't thrilled with it, and quite frankly, I was a little annoyed.

As a quick aside... I love Paul Greengrass movies. Black Sunday was hard-hitting and brilliant, and you cannot tell me you didn't like The Bourne Supremacy. If there's gonna be a film made about 9/11, I feel comfortable with Greengrass. Not so much Stone... but Greengrass for sure.

The trailer had very little actual movie footage in it. The rest of the trailer was filled with interviews with Greengrass and family members of United Flight 93 passengers, and they were discussing the merits and importance of making a film about 9/11 and why these stories need to told. My problem with the trailer was that, after I saw it, I felt like they were telling me "It's ok. The families said we could, so go see the movie." I mean, seriously? Is that what they were going for? If so or if not, that was my reaction, and I guarantee others had the same (not all of you, but some... admit it). Don't get me wrong, I am truly happy to know that the families support the film. That was my first question when I heard the movie was being made. I just think everyone needs to decide for themselves whether or not to see the movie and not to feel pressured by the studio marketing team.

It's one man's opinion, but I really do think that this trailer, by the way it was cut, is pressuring the audience to be ok with the subject matter, whether it's intentional or not. And face it people, not everyone is ok with a film like this coming out less than 5 years later.

I do admire Greengrass and the other makers of this film for tackling such a difficult subject. I really do hope it turns out to be a good movie. I just don't know if I'll be there in the audience to see it. Haven't made up my mind yet.

Oh, and I will concede that the alternative to this trailer would've been a trailer of just scenes from the film, at which point it would certainly be attacked for appearing sensational. It's a Catch-22, to be sure.

By my calculations, the next castaway will be named Yelnick McWawah

Lost fans bug the crap out of me. They annoy me SO much, I can't stand talking to them sometimes. Let me clarify: I think Lost is a fine show. It was better in season 1 and the story kind of drags, but all in all, I keep watching and I enjoy myself when I do. I guess you could say I'm a fan of the show. The people who annoy me are the conspiracy theorist uber-fans, who look for deep philosophical meaning in each episode. And now, since they're all Tivo owners, they spend hours deconstructing and analyzing the blurry image of a medicine bottle that appeared on screen for less than 5 seconds! They're the same people who figured out that when Walt appears he speaks backwards and then they actually output reversed audio to find out what he said! And don't even get me started on all the crap that adds up to 108 or multiples thereof! I can't get that invested in a show. I just can't. The most I can do is watch the show every week, buy the DVDs, and watch them over and over again. I will not resort to scouring each episode for hidden meaning that may or may not be there in the first place.

You can thank a co-worker of mine for inspiring this little rant. He's a wannabe Lost uber-fan but he does have tons of friends who are uber-fans. So, this past Thursday I come into the office and he immediately tracks me down to ask --SPOILER ALERT-- "What did you think about that black light diagram on the blast door? Wasn't that cool?" I proceeded to tell him that I could care less. He then said "Wanna know what it means? A friend sent me the whole translation." My only thought at that point was, "Don't these people have anything better to do than to translate a diagram from an ABC TV show?" COME ON! My stance is this: if the writers/creators of the show wanted me to know what the diagram meant, they'd tell me. If not, then I'm good not knowing. I trust that they won't lessen my enjoyment of the show just because I don't spend hours on the internet looking for Lost references in the Second Book of Poetics by Aristotle.

So please, don't ask me what I think the hieroglyphics mean, or where the food came from, or what Walt said, or if I knew that so and so was Shannon's father and whether or not I saw him in Kate's dream that was featured in Jack's flashback as told by his father to Sawyer's dog while they were on Eko's plane! I DON'T KNOW!

Now, can we please feature Eko more in the show? He's the best character of the lot!