Month: April 2004

Four issues to go, and this one’s out on the stands now. Whad’ja think?

And please, CM fans…stop wasting your time trying to save the book. Marvel simply isn’t interested in keeping it around. It’s never gonna sell like a Spider book, it has no movie optioned for it, and it’s not going to pull in underutilized audiences such as young girls (which is why Spider-Girl is continuing.) So they won’t keep it going. Simple as that.

Please put your energies into reading and spreading the word about “Fallen Angel,” which does have a genuine chance to succeed (especially if the trade collection sells out quickly).

PAD

Nearly a hundred years ago, the head of the Philadelphia Communist party suggested to conscripts for World War I that the draft was a violation of the 13th amendment rights against involuntary servitude. The government’s response for the expression of this presumably despicable notion was to throw him into jail for a decade, a decision upheld by the Supreme Court (it was from that decision that the “cannot falsely shout fire in a crowded theater” dictum came from.)

So now, of course, when we live in a time that’s far more conducive to open discussion, and we have a much more understanding Supreme Court, I’m moved to wonder…*is* a draft unconstitutional? The constitution gives congress the right to “raise” armies, but I didn’t notice anything that specifically said they can commandeer citizens against the will of the citizens. In fact, there’s yet another amendment–the 5th one–that says citizens will not be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law. That is to say, the only situation in which the Constitution seems to say it’s okay to deprive someone of their basic freedom of movement and right to have their own stuff is if they’re paying for a criminal act of which they’ve been convicted.

So…is there a case to be made for a draft being unconstitutional? And don’t tell me it’s constitutional simply because it’s existed before unless you’re ready to argue that African-Americans should never have been counted as more than 3/5 of a person because that was the way it was done before.

PAD

I fully understand that characters in comic strips are just pen-and-ink representations of things going on in an artist’s mind. That they’re not real.

Nevertheless, in seeing the launch of the current “Doonesbury” storyline in which B.D. becomes a man down in Iraq, my first thought was, “Oh God, poor Boopsie, she couldn’t take it, please don’t let him die.” Which shows just how effective Trudeau’s become in investing us in his cast’s fates.

Spoiler to follow regarding B.D…

Continue Reading “Trudeau brings it home” →

Got a call from Keith Giffen today regarding “Captain Marvel #25.” He was working on the breakdowns for issue #25, the last issue. As I noted in a previous post, I came with a story so demented that I believed–and still do–that Keith was the only artist who could pull it off. He mentioned to me that when his coming onto CM #25 was announced, the most often heard comment he got from fans was, “What took so long?” Apparently fans feel that we have similar enough sensibilities that we should have teamed up on a project long ago.

We’re on the same page with CM #25. If you want to have some idea of what to expect, think of the classic Chuck Jones cartoon, “Duck Amuck.”

PAD

In a supermarket yesterday as I was going through the checkout line, I heard a couple of cashier guys chatting and instantly knew what the subject matter was.

“The first one was great, it was like this terrific action movie. But the second one sux.”

Having seen “Kill Bill Vol. 2” today with Kathleen, I fully understand the sentiment. I don’t *agree* with it, but I get where the young guy was coming from.

While “Kill Bill Vol. 1” was the Quentin Tarrantino version of a 1970s Hong Kong action film, “Kill Bill Vol. 2” is QT’s version of–don’t laugh–a chick flick.

If you haven’t seen it but plan to…stay through to the very end for an amusing out take.

Spoilers follow:

Continue Reading “Chick Flick” →

Turns out that Caroline’s majestic barfing on the flight back from Chicago may not simply have been a response to turbulence. Instead it might have been the precursor to something more problematic. Starting Tuesday, she’s been running a fever on and off, as high as 103.9–which isn’t as dangerous for an infant as for an adult, but still. And she developed a runny nose and cough. But her energy level was still up, and her appetite was fine. So we treated her with fever reducer, kept her fluids up, and waited to see if that would be enough to break what could be a simple flu.

But last night was hellacious, and she was crying in such a way that she seemed in genuine pain. And I thought, “Okay. Ear infection.” We took her to the doctor and, lo and behold…ear infection. Both ears. So now we have her on Amoxyl, a pediatric cure-all so universal that David Steinberg once did a bit as to what it would be like if a pediatrician were the President of the United States. (“Mr. President, what should we do about the Middle East situation?” “I’m thinking Amoxycilin.”)

She’s napping now, making up for all the sleep she lost last night.

Sometimes I can’t believe I’m 47 and doing this all OVER again.

PAD

A pivotal issue in the series hits the stands this week. Whad’ja think?

PAD