Posts Tagged ‘costume’
64 items.
You have to be practical about these things, people. You’re just NOT going to be able to fit cardboard leggings into a closed cardboard suitcase armor. You’re just NOT, okay? Trust me, I’ve tried.
You can get the gauntlets in there. You can get the sleeves and the helmet. But if you want leggings, you’re S.O.L.
Okay, fine. I just wanted to draw another comic with Tom in his underwear. Are you happy?!
I know I promised you guys a review of Iron Man 2, but, well… as you can see… that hasn’t happened yet. There are a couple of reasons why.
First, you guys have been leaving GREAT comments after each of the blogs since Monday. I’ve been reading and I want to participate. But I also don’t want what you guys are saying to color too much of my opinion surrounding the movie.
Second, it’s almost been a week since I’ve seen the film and my memory is shot these days. That’s because I can only retain about 30 seconds of information before I’m dealing with some sort of crisis involving crayons or stained furniture.
To combat this, I’m thinking about seeing Iron Man 2 again this evening. Cami’s cool with it once the kids are asleep. She doesn’t feel a need to see the movie a second time, but I do.
Another reason I want to see Iron Man 2 again is just so I can sit back and appreciate it a little bit more. Maybe let my eye wander and soak in a few of the details. Or – since I know where the action is going be on screen – train my eye to those areas in anticipation so I can download as much information as possible.
Dialogue? Oh, yeah. I guess I’ll listen more closely to some of that, too.
In the meantime, I have several links to keep you busy. A couple of these are a little old and I feel terrible about not informing you sooner.
First things first, I sat in for a round of discussion with The F.I.L.M. Army crew on May 1 to discuss the bumper crop of Summer movies. I had a great time with these guys and they really knew their stuff. Talking with them reminded me of the good times we had recording The Triple Feature. Each of us were pulling weird references out of nowhere and laughing our heads off about it. I’d love to record another show with them in the future. I think they left an offer on the table. I’ll have to take them up on it sometime.
Second, the guys over at TGT Webcomics did an interview with me while I was attending C2E2 last month and recently posted it to their site. I think I did a pretty good job of answering Kurt “VertigoX” Sasso’s questions. But watching the video, one quote kept ringing in my head…
“Suck in the gut, guys – We’re the Ghostbusters?…”
Yeah, I gotta start working out.
THIRDLY, did you know that my good buddy Zach Miller has started producing new Joe and Monkey comics again? Better git while the gittin’s good. Zach is like Haley’s Comet. He comes around once every 76 years. But every time he makes an appearance, he puts on quite a show! Welcome Zach back to webcomics with your patronage, won’t you?
So that’s my good karma for today. I appreciate everyone coming back and checking out the new comic (ON TIME, I might add… *sigh*). I’m bringing the story line to it’s zenith. You should see it wrapping up around this time next week. Until then, more Iron Man goodness to sink your teeth into.
Thanks again for reading the comic and – if you’re so inclined – don’t be afraid to spread the word using those handy social media buttons to the right of the comic. It doesn’t have to be today’s comic. It can be ANY COMIC IN THE ARCHIVE! Pick out a favorite and share it with someone today! Every little bit helps.
Have a great weekend!
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Hey, guys. Sorry for another late comic. I know that this has been happening more and more frequently, but I feel like it’s a by-product of the time that I’m putting in on this story line.
I’m pretty far out of my comfort zone on this one. I’ve been coming up with new character designs, trying new panel arrangements and posing the characters differently. I’ve been doing a lot of effects work and generally trying to make the action pop off the page. I know the last few comics have been kind of light on the jokes, but I hope you at least appreciate the effort that’s going into the art.
That said, I think I’m about ready to wrap things up on this story line. It’s just taking too much out of me and throwing me way off schedule. I hate being late with the comic. It’s my number one rule and I keep breaking it over and over again. I want to get back on track.
I should mention that I was able to see Iron Man 2 again over the weekend and I think I had a better time watching it for a second time than I did the first time around.
I’m not saying that I didn’t enjoy the movie the first time around. I think I was just trying to soak it all in. Watching it for a second time, I could relax and let it unfold in front of me a little more.
I’m in the middle of writing my review right now and I hope to have it posted to the site soon. Maybe Tuesday, we’ll see. The review is not 100% positive, which might surprise some of you. But I think I’m being fair about the films plot holes and shortcomings (of which there are a few).
In any case, it will be my definitive statement on the matter and hopefully we can move on to greener pastures soon.
Thanks again for your patience. Stay close to Twitter and Facebook for updates on the Iron Man 2 review when it’s posted!
Talk to you soon!
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I knew sooner or later that I would have to explain Victor’s functional costume. I found it funny that he used electrified whips to discipline his employees before Iron Man 2 came out. That it happened to look like Whiplash’s power suit was merely coincidence.
I don’t know if the science behind Victor’s invention is sound. Stripping the casing from extension cords probably wouldn’t produce the effect illustrated in the last few strips. But I claim Artistic License. Ya’ can’t touch me with a ten-foot pole!
I’m probably going to wrap up this story line on Friday, but I’m not exactly sure how I’m going to do it. Having defeated Victor and explained his costume, there’s not much left for the crew to accomplish but actually go see the movie.
I suppose I could end the story line right here, but I have this obsessive compulsive thought that story lines need to end on a Friday so I can start fresh on Monday.
I talked about doing a “cast portrait” of everyone in their costumes in the comments section of Monday’s comic to serve as a book-end. Also as a way of saying good-bye to the story line in a way. It’s not a particularly funny solution, but I’m leaning in that direction unless something better pops into my head. We’ll see.
Not much else to say beyond that. Looking forward to maybe see MacGruber this weekend, but I have no firm plans yet.
“That’s what she said.”
Oh, Michael Scott.
GOOD DAY, EVERYONE!
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So instead of doing a “cast photo” like I hinted at on Wednesday, I couldn’t resist trying to tie a bow on this arc by explaining Victor’s actions and his new, “no costume” policy.
However, now I’m afraid that I’ve created more questions than I’ve answered by introducing Victor’s formal rival, Burian.
Who is Burian? What is his history with Victor? The world may never know.
But if you’re curious, Burian is Ukranian for “Near The Woods” or “God’s Child.” At least, according to this web site it is. So, as you can see, I’ve done a little research. That counts as an investment in the character, doesn’t it?
All I know is that Furry Vengeance is a ridiculous movie title and I couldn’t let it go without commenting on it somehow.
Seriously, is anyone watching out for Brenden Fraser these days? It’s one misfire after another with this guy. Extreme Measure didn’t do so hot and it had HARRISON-FRIGGIN-FORD in it. Fraser is like box office kryptonite. If he’s in a movie, I don’t want to see it.
I mean, I thought this little stunt from the Golden Globes earlier this year was embarassing…
…but to attach your name to a movie called FURRY VENGEANCE?… Brenden, take your meds.
That’s it for me today. Also, I haven’t forgotten the Iron Man 2 review I promised you. It’s still sitting on my desktop, half-written. I just haven’t had an opportunity to finish it yet. Hopefully I will soon. But now that the movie has been out for two weeks, I guess it’s a little anti-climactic.
Oh, well. I want it to be “on-the-record,” so I’ll get around to publishing it soon. Thanks for your patience on that one.
BTW – Anyone seeing MacGruber this weekend? I’m really excited to see it. I think it looks hilarious. I know Will Forte isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but I think he’s probably one of the most undervalued performers on Saturday Night Live. I’m really curious how they’ve managed to stretch out a :30 second sketch into a full-length movie. I think sending up 80s action movies and asking all of the other performers to treat it completely seriously is the exact right way to go about it.
If you have dreams of making life-saving inventions out of household materials, leave your comments below.
Or maybe you want to talk about Furries and Ukranian baby names. I don’t know. HAVE AT IT!
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So, here it is. This is the artwork I was threatening to do a week ago. A nice little cast portrait to commemorate my Iron Man 2 storyline. Apologies for the lack of color, but I think it looks better in black and white.
Yeah, I know it kind of ended with a thud. But I’m really proud of about 95% of it and thought it was worth celebrating. Goodness knows I burned up a lot of midnight oil putting it together for you guys.
As a special treat, I filmed myself drawing the artwork last night and sped it up for you in this delightful little YouTube video:
If you find that exciting, then I have even BETTER news for you!
I have decided to auction off the original inked illustration you see in the video on eBay. You can find it here. It’s on a 9 x 12″ sheet of Bristol board with a 1″ border (so you can frame it if you want to!) I will make sure to mail it flat.
Bidding starts now and the auction will remain open for the next 5 days. I don’t sell original artwork all that often, so if you’re looking for a one-of-a-kind piece from yours truly, now is the time to snap it up!
Now if I can get serious for a moment…
I went to this extra effort with the video and the auction because I’m afraid I have some bad news and I wanted to let you guys down gently. There isn’t a good way to say it other than to just come right out and say it…
EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY, I WILL BE SCALING BACK PRODUCTION OF THEATER HOPPER TO ONE DAY A WEEK.
This decision was a hard one for me but, ultimately, necessary. With the end of the Iron Man 2 story line, now seemed like the best time to make a change.
The primary motivation behind this cutback is actually very positive. A year after having been laid off, I have finally found full-time employment again! I start work in June and am very much looking forward to the opportunity.
But, as such, I recognize that I cannot continue to dedicate myself to Theater Hopper on a thrice-weekly schedule. The late nights spent staying up past midnight working on the comic have caught up with me. I don’t bounce back like I used to when I was 24 years-old and just starting the comic. Add to the mix two children with irregular sleeping schedules and, well, the end result is that I’m not 100% like I should be.
There’s been a lot that I’ve sacrificed for Theater Hopper. Primarily sleep. But my health, my attitude and my availability to my family have all suffered as a consequence. I don’t blame anyone by myself for these choices. But, at some point, one has to recognize when enough is enough. There simply aren’t enough hours in the day to be effective in all the areas I need to be effective in.
Part of me wondered if it was better to end the comic completely. But I didn’t want to do a disservice to you, the fans, for supporting me. Nor did I want to perform a disservice to myself and the investment that I’ve made over the last 8 years.
Eventually, Theater Hopper will have to end – as all things do. But when it does, I want to make sure it goes out on a high note with a story that satisfies the long-term readers and appreciates them for their kindness and encouragement.
Until then, it will be business as usual content-wise. I’ll continue to make fun of the latest releases, just not as often. I’ll probably be playing around with the format a little until I strike the right balance. But from now on, you can expect a new comic here every Monday morning.
To aid the transition, I encourage you to follow Theater Hopper’s RSS feed. I also encourage to to follow Theater Hopper on Facebook and my personal account on Twitter. They will be the best places for you to receive news and updates as well as links to the most recent comics.
If you have any questions, please feel free to leave them either here in the comments section or in the THorum. If you’re not comfortable with that, e-mails are okay, too.
This is a large adjustment for me, as I’m sure it will be for you. I will miss updating the comic three times a week. But, in the end, I know that this is the decision that will benefit me and my family most. At this point, it’s all about realigning my priorities. I will always enjoy producing the comic and interacting with the fans. But my family, my livelihood and my personal health must come first.
As the excellent, supportive and understanding audience you have always been, I know you will appreciate my reasons.
Again, I thank you. You have been much more kind to me than I deserve.
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Hey, everyone. Apologies for the delay on Monday’s comic. I had it finished and uploaded, but the blog wasn’t posting with it and I couldn’t get things sorted out until late Monday night. I would have gotten to it earlier, but I had a bunch of house stuff to take care of first.
It’s been a little more than a month since we moved into the new house, but it seems like we’re constantly addressing issues inside the house. Nothing serious. But a lot of little things that cumulatively make us feel like it’s not OUR house yet. So after we get the kids to bed, we work and toil and try to erase any trace of the former owners. We’re installing light fixtures, door handles, painting rooms… everything.
But like I told Cami earlier tonight, “Every time we replace a light bulb or cook a meal in this place, the more it becomes ours.” So, there’s that.
Of course, on top of things, I’m wrapping up my Master’s degree. I also had to do a little work this evening on an outline I’m putting together for a group project due in a couple of weeks. I have class this weekend and then finals on November 19 and 20 and then I’m done – DONE, I tell you! No more night classes. Free time unencumbered by thoughts of marketing initiatives and ethical practice. It will be a glorious day, I tell you.
Don’t tell Cami, but with my Master’s out of the way, I’m toying with the idea of bringing Theater Hopper back maybe twice a week at the start of the year. Don’t hold me to that. Obviously I need to figure out a schedule that allows me to do that. But I kind of figured since it will be Winter and we’ll be in the house much more, maybe that’ll be a good time to explore my options.
I have to tell you, I haven’t enjoyed updating the comic once a week. I’m the kind of guy that usually does better with a little momentum behind him. I’d be remiss if I didn’t admit that sometimes Theater Hopper feels like a neglected chore.
I don’t WANT it to feel that way, though! I like Theater Hopper. I want to continue doing Theater Hopper. After 8 years in the game, I’d really like to make it to our 10 year anniversary – even if that means hanging on by my fingernails for the last 6 months.
Anyway, this took kind of a weird turn into personal confession territory. But sometimes I like to paint a picture for you guys with where I’m at in my life and I feel like I haven’t been communicating that very well lately. I want to re-establish myself. Not just for your benefit, but for my own. Like I said, once I have that momentum, it’s easier for me to stay focused and get other things related to the comic accomplished. Until then, it’s kind of a waiting game.
Lets talk about Saw 3D for a second, shall we? It’s the 7th movie in the franchise, right? I can’t even keep track anymore. They say it’s the last one. I’m very “meh” about it. I mean, I guess it’s good that they’ve tried to weave a narrative through the movies, but at this point, is anyone invested except the die-hards? I hope the ending was satisfying for them because the Saw franchise pretty much painted itself into a corner in terms of attracting new fans.
Who among you watched Saw 3D? Was it what you expected? Were you satisfied? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!
If you didn’t watch Saw 3D, tell us about your Halloween weekend? Go to any cool parties? Have any good stories? What was your costume? Share with us in the comments below!
If you want to know what I did this Halloween weekend, I walked Henry and the neighborhood and took him trick-or-treating. He wanted to be Buzz Lightyear. I decided to coordinate with him. It went over pretty well.
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I know I’m a little bit behind the curve on this, but let’s talk about it anyway.
On Monday, Sony released a brand new, official promo image of Andrew Garfield in costume as Spider-Man in director Mark Webb’s reboot of the franchise.
The film’s official title was also announced – The Amazing Spider-Man.
There have been plenty of photos of Garfield in costume from outdoor sequences the crew has been shooting around Los Angeles. I will state for the record that I haven’t been impressed by those shots. But I reserved judgment until we saw something official from Sony.
Now that we have something concrete, I can say… ehhh… I don’t hate it.
Sony originally released a photo of Garfield sans-mask looking pummeled and forlorn a few months ago. Aside from the aesthetic changes they made to the costume, that shot didn’t mean much to me. Without the mask, the jury was still out.
Now that I’ve seen the mask, I’d say they did a pretty good job. It still has the Oakley lenses similar to the costume in Sam Raimi’s version, but the webs on the mask are thinner and horizontal across the forehead and scalp. To my eye, it looks more like the old Steve Ditko version of the costume (comic book nerds will know what I’m talking about) and I think that’s a good thing.
Even though I think there’s too much blue in the costume – and unnecessarily textured – the colors are bright and poppy. That, in combination with the decision to title the film The Amazing Spider-Man leads me to believe that the film will have a lighter, bouncier feel than the angst-ridden Raimi films.
Don’t get me wrong. Peter Parker’s life sucks. That’s what makes the character relatable. But when he puts on the mask, he’s free – almost jubilant. That’s something that Raimi’s films never fully captured. I have my fingers crossed that Webb’s Spider-Man will be much wittier and quicker on the take.
This reboot will live and die by the tone it establishes. If it’s not different enough from the originals, the 5 year span between the last movie and this relaunch will make the film feel perfunctory. Here’s hoping they pull it off.
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Warner Bros. released three new stills of Ryan Reynolds dressed up in costume for the forthcoming Green Lantern movie. As I’m sure you’re all aware, he’s not wearing an actual costume, but a CGI suit that is being painted over his body by very lonely computer nerds in post.
Here’s my take… I’ve always felt that this movie version of the Green Lantern costume was needlessly ornamental and vaguely Tron-like. But I’ve gotten used to it. Now that I’m looking at this complete head to toe shot, I’m really creeped out by what looks like shrink-wrapped socks on Reynolds’ feet. Seriously, animators. I don’t need to know what the indentation of Reynolds’ toenail bed looks like. But, my! Those foot tendons are FABULOUS!
I swear, with this movie, it’s one step forward and two steps back.
Do you have an opinion about Green Lantern? I bet you do! You should leave your comments below!
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Is “a fistful of power rings” a new sexual euphemism? Let’s see if we can make that happen.
Maybe there’s something wrong with me, but I always found the original Green Lantern comic design to be one of the sexiest in comics. Yeah, I know Hal Jordan is a dude, but I always appreciated the costume’s sleek, retro-future design. It’s truly one of the few costumes in comics that doesn’t need improvement. Even Jim Lee managed to leave it relatively unchanged in his horrible Nehru collar-inspired reboot of DC comic’s entire line of characters.
Of course, the producers of the Green Lantern movie managed to muck that up by making Hal Jordan look like a emerald-hued Slim Goodbody.
Critics beat the crap out of Green Lantern. It’s averaging a 26% “rotten” score on Rotten Tomatoes right now. According to Box Office Mojo, estimated attendance for Green Lantern is below that of even Daredevil and Ghost Rider – two films synonymous with B-grade superhero movie flame-outs.
But the fan reaction has been interesting. People seem to be defending the movie as mindless fun. I take that to mean that the eye-candy was satisfactory even if the story fell flat on it’s face.
If you had asked me a few months ago to speculate on Green Lantern’s odds of success at the box office, I probably would have sided with the critics. Despite Ryan Reynold’s inherent likability, all of the new movie clips and preview material they were showing made Green Lantern look like amateur hour. Everything from the costume design, to the lumpy CG character work to the inclusion of Sinestro, Hector Hammond AND Parallax as villains did not inspire confidence.
But a strange thing happened to me a couple of weeks ago. The success of X-Men: First Class effectively eliminated my doomsday predictions for Green Lantern. I don’t know why. Beyond their superhero subject matter, the films couldn’t be more different from each other.
I guess it’s because I was convinced that X-Men: First Class was going to be a complete bomb. To me it appeared as tone-deaf to the comics as Green Lantern appears to be. The fact that X-Men: First Class was actually good forced me to put my assumptions on hold and adopt a wait-and-see attitude toward Green Lantern.
So, despite the bad reviews, I’m still willing to invest the time to see Green Lantern. I’m willing to open up my heart a little bit and take my chances.
Because here’s the thing: I LOVE Green Lantern. For me, he’s the DC equivalent to Iron Man and I’ve been a fan of the character and the mythology for a long, long time. In fact, the GL books are the only DC books I read right now. So you know I’m serious about it.
It’s easy to love Superman or Spider-Man… Captain America or Batman. That’s like saying “I love America” or “I love vacation days.” It’s kind of a given.
It takes a little bit of fortitude to say “I love Green Lantern” or “I love Iron Man.” Because, for a long time, these guys were second-stringers and their comics were not very good.
I hate to be all “I loved these characters before they were cool.” That’s not how I feel. I’m thrilled these characters are getting their due in popular culture. I’m just trying to explain how long I have been invested in them.
So, yeah. I want to give Green Lantern and – more surprisingly – Cami wants to come with me.
Well, maybe not surprisingly. She’s a huge Ryan Reynolds fan. How big? Her favorite Ryan Reynolds movie is Just Friends. Okay, admittedly, it’s a pretty funny movie. But, yeah… watching Reynolds run around in a painted on costume for two hours? I’m sure it doesn’t hurt.
Did any of you check out Green Lantern this weekend? What did you take away from it? Is the costume everything it’s trumped up to be? Leave your comments below!
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Oct24
I really don’t have anything to say about this week’s comic except that I decided to take the themes explored in last week’s comic and ran with them.
I guess as I thought more and more about a horror movie with social media elements, I figured that there had to be some kind of boogeyman to really stoke audience’s fears. Y’know, like Jason Vorhees or Freddy Krueger. Facebook’s Privacy Policy seemed as logical a choice as any to depict the embodiment of walking evil. So, there you go.
That said, if you’re not following Theater Hopper on Facebook, what’s wrong with you?
Oh, and also, please use the ShareThis plugin below to spread the comic around to all your friends – preferably the Facebook share button.
Y’see… that’s what evil DOES. It creeps into your heart and becomes commonplace. You come to depend on it for strength. Before you realize it, the evil has consumed you… FROM WITHIN!!!
Happy Halloween, everyone!
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