I know Grindhouse doesn’t come out for another week, but I pretty much backed myself into a corner by doing my Blade of Glory comic on Monday. There really wasn’t much after that I wanted to make fun of.
I actually have a whole week of Grindhouse strips ready to go for next week. So, at first, I thought this one might be overkill. But as Cami and I were gathered around the dinner table tonight, Henry resting atop the table in his bouncy chair, we discussed Grindhouse and Rose McGowan’s almost instantly iconic look as a stripper with a machine gun for a leg. Our conversation turned to how we could make fun of it.
This comic was originally more complicated. First having Tom and Cami wax poetic about the prosthesis. But the more we discussed it, the more we thought it sounded like "industry conversation." So I decided to turn it over to the hapless (and so far nameless) production lackeys of the Hollywood Hills. I’m really starting to like these characters. They pull through in a pinch.
Not much else to say for now, I’m afraid. I had a meeting that lasted through my lunch hour on Thursday, so I wasn’t able to get away and draw today’s comic while I ate. Instead, I had to put it together when I got home and only after we put Henry down for the night. For once, I’m kind of glad he didn’t sleep very well last night because he’s sleeping like wood tonight!
In any case, I’m tired and will need to close soon.
Quick word about the Copying Beethoven DVD giveaway contest. A lot of you have sent in your entries but a few of you aren’t following instructions all the way. Along with the completed code, I need your full name, age and mailing address. Some people are just sending in their name and address. Some people are just sending in the clue. I know a few of you are put of that I’m asking for your age. But I have to ask because Copying Beethoven is rated PG-13 and I can’t award a 12 year-old with the movie. That may sound unlikely, but it’s also important that I establish the prescident for when I might be giving away a movie that’s rated R.
So here’s the deal. Under normal circumstances, I would be forced to throw these incomplete entries out. But since is the first contest we’re doing, I’ll give those of you who only sent in a portion of your information a second chance. If you want to send a revised entry to theaterhopper@hotmail.com, I will accept them. Response has been strong to this initial offering, so you’ll want to make sure your name is in the running! Thanks again.
One last question – since t-shirt sales are starting to pick up again and a few of you seemed to respond positively to seeing me modeling the designs, I was thinking it might be cool if I posted pictures of YOU guys wearing the shirts on the store pages! Interested? Send in pictures of yourself wearing any of our shirt designs currently in stock to theaterhopper@hotmail.com. Or, if you want to send in a picture of yourself reading one of our books, we’ll take those, too!
One thing I need help with: Does anyone know how to write a custom script that will allow me to post thumbnails of these pictures under the main image on the product listing page? Then, when you rollover them, a larger version of the thumbnail appears where the closeup image of the shirt design displays at the default? Once again, fire a message to theaterhopper@hotmail.com if you have any experience with that kind of development!
That will do it for me today. Cami and I are seeing Blades of Glory tonight. Her Mom insisted that we go so she could babysit. It’s been a blessing to have our family so close by as we’re bringing up Henry. It’s been a real treat for him to get to know both sets of grandparents better.
Oh, well! Have a great weekend, everyone!
Curious as to how a movie with a robot-headed Jason Statham might play out? Vote for Theater Hopper at Top Web Comics to find out!
I had a hard time writing the punch line for today’s comic. It really could have gone one of two ways. Either I could have gone for something totally benign and played the unexpected reversal card or I could have pushed the concept of the Crank films into ludicrous territory.
In the end, the latter option had robots, so that’s what I went with.
As you know Crank: High Voltage hits theaters today and I’m pretty pumped to see it. I think I’m going to the late show tonight.
Aziz Ansari from Human Giant and, most recently, NBC’s Parks and Recreation, saw the film last night and live blogged DURING the movie using Twitter. He’s posted his collection of tweets here, away from his Twitter account. Sample tweet? “Chev needs to call Dwight Yoakam and figure out what’s happening!” Seems like he had a pretty good time!
For the record, I will not be posting updates to my Twitter account when I see the movie later tonight. I guess Aziz ran into a bit of controversy over it, but at the same time… this is Crank 2, people. Lighten up!
I would like to take this opportunity to switch gears and let everyone know that there is a pre-order for a new shirt design going on now through next Wednesday.
Your orders make the difference in terms of how many shirts I decide to order and what kind of inventory I keep around in the future. So if you like what you see, don’t wait. Pre-order Spoiler Alert! today!
I’d also like to point out that I am also still taking pre-orders for Theater Hopper – Year Three. I know there are some of you who have placed an order already and are wondering what’s going on. The honest truth is that the pre-order for the book have stalled and I’m about $1,500 short of what I need to get it printed.
Now, it’s possible that I haven’t been pushing the book as hard as I have for the first two books, but that’s because I don’t want people to get tired of hearing about it. A few people expressed alienation when I produced the last book, so I’m trying to stay conscious of that.
But, at the same time, I want the book to be printed in time for Wizard World Chicago in August and I need to make up the difference somehow. If I’m not talking about the book, then maybe I can entice you with the shirt. A little diversification goes a long way…
Last thing I’ll mention, but I have an option to bundle books together with shirts at a discounted price. You can buy one book and one shirt for $25.00 – that’s $5.00 less than if you bought them separately. Something to think about it if you’re looking to save a little money.
If you’re not in a position to purchase anything from the store, tips are always appreciated. Even a dollar or two helps. I’ve been reluctant to announce an official donation drive for the book since I still owe people original art from when my hard drive crashed last fall. Plus, I really only want to reserve that kind of thing for emergency situations. But if you’re feeling generous, I wanted to let you know donations are an option.
I’ll leave it at that for now. That’s to everyone for their support.
So what does your weekend look like. Are you seeing Crank: High Voltage? Is anyone here seeing 17 Again, or should we all go to Blockbuster and rent Vice Versa instead? Fred Savage FTW!
What about the mature adults in the audience? Are you going to see State of Play? I’ve heard it’s an odd little love letter to traditional reporting at newspapers since it has an odd, contentious relationship between Russell Crowe’s character as the hardened journalist and Rachel McAdams character as a newspaper blogger that stumbles onto the coverup. Kind of a neat way to set up some internal conflict.
What do you think?