Category: 1

Actually, Bugs Bunny was being unfair. Albuquerque is a lovely place and that’s where I am for Bubonicon 42 where I am slated to be Guest of Honor. Tonight I’ll be taking in an Albuquerque Isotopes games (a baseball team named for the episode of “The Simpsons” where the Springfield Isotopes were relocating to New Mexico, thereby removing the state from consideration as one of the places where the Simpsons home town is.) And tomorrow I’ll be doing a store appearance at a comic book store, Astro-Zombies, from 1-3, before the convention actually gets started.

I brought a minimal amount of stuff to sell, but if anyone ever wanted to buy the script to my episode of “Ben 10: Alien Force,” you’ll have the chance.

PAD

Because of them, I found out about ABC’s special deal where the first 50,000 visitors to a specified site were able to watch the pilot of the new superhero themed show, “No Ordinary Family,” starring Michael Chiklis (last seen playing a not-dissimilar role as a big strong guy in “The Fantastic Four“) and Julie Benz (last seen playing a somewhat dissimilar role as a lesbian stripper who wants to start a better career in “Desperate Housewives.” Because when you want to introduce a character who is going to cut across all interest groups, you really can’t go wrong with a petite blonde lesbian stripper who wants to start a better career.)

The premise is simple to anyone who’s familiar with either the FF or for that matter, “The Incredibles.” A dysfunctional family goes on a trip that ends badly with a plane crash into a particularly unusual section of the Amazon (the river, not the book dealer) and as a result acquire superpowers that Just So Happen to be tailored to their respective personalities.

It would be rude to dwell on spoilers for a show that won’t air for over a month, so just speaking in broad strokes, it’s a fun, well-acted, family-friendly show that doesn’t take itself too seriously and gives hints of a broader universe within that I would think will be followed up in subsequent episodes. We’ll definitely be watching.

PAD

In the DC Universe, are there any established police officers or police detectives who are (a) not secretly superheroes and (b) operate out of New York City? Not Metropolis or Gotham, but New York City.

PAD

Jim Valentino’s “Fractured Fables” project, which should be instantly understandable to anyone who has fond memories of the old “Fractured Fairy Tales” cartoons, got an excellent write up in “Ain’t It Cool News.” Since this happens to be my website, I’ll single out what they said about my contribution:

The Little Mermaid: I did this list chronologically how they appear in the book, but if I had to pick a “best-of-the-best” this would be it. Art and story combine fantastically to reinvent the babe aquatic’s tale. While the “be careful what you wish for” message is still firmly intact, Peter David’s traditional humor and wit shines through in every panel. Juan Ferreyra paints some dámņ pretty seascapes and has a great time on dry land as well making all of our favorite Mermaid’s wishes and horrors come to life.

And the Washington Times also had many positive comments about the book. Once again, being an egomaniac, I’ll single out what they said about my story:

The adventure of “The Little Mermaid” turns much more ominous in the hands of comics scribe extraordinaire Peter David as her quest to live happily ever after with a human prince becomes a puzzling problem in podiatry. Artist Ron Ferrara (sic) offers ample arch support for the mermaid’s issues.

The reviewers had nice things to say about many of the other stories as well. Check out the book when you have a chance.

PAD

One American in five now believes that President Obama is a Muslim. This is apparently regarded as a big story and some sort of commentary on Obama.

It’s worth noting that in a survey a couple of years ago, thirty-two percent of respondents believed that Vin Diesel was the inventor of the diesel engine.

To me, the real story is that a disturbingly large percentage of Americans are stupid. Then again…not exactly news.

PAD

American Airlines spokesman Virasb Vahidi (official title: Chief commercial officer). It’s his job to try and make palatable Ameican Airlines finding yet another way to charge people for something they were getting for free before.

American has decided to charge customers anywhere from $19 to $39 for seats in the first few rows of coach. They’re no wider, they don’t have any more leg room. Yet they’ve decided to dub them “Express seats,” because apparently if the airline is running late (and American has one of THE worst on-time records in the industry) they decided that travelers with tight connections should have to pay extra if they want to be able to sit far enough forward to compensate for American’s timely ineptitude.

So how does Mr. Vahidi put a positive spin on this? “Express Seats highlights American’s focus on offering customers what they value most. This is another great product under the Your Choice program that puts more travel choices in the customer’s hands.”

No, it doesn’t. It takes OUT of the customer’s hands the option of being able to sit forward in the plane without having to pay through the nose for it. It’s not as if they’re giving you a huge discount if you opt to sit in the back. They’re just trying to put a shining veneer on a steaming pile of crap.

PAD

Coming out in October: “The Balverine Order,” an original novel that ties into the “Fable” video game. It’s set between the events in Fable II and the forthcoming Fable III. Quoting from the Amazon description: The days of magic and adventure are fading away, giving way to the age of industry and science. As the aged last Hero sits upon the throne of Albion, two friends-the privileged Thomas and his loyal servant, James- set out for the East in search of a legendary beast: the vicious, rarely-seen balverine. But their desire for adventure may be their ultimate undoing-because their quarry has just found them…

I also wrote a 64-page adaptation of the original “Tron” film for Marvel which will be coming out in November.

PAD