Posts Tagged ‘Elektra’
5 items.
Sometimes when I’m coming up with content for the strip, things are pretty lean. Early winter is a notoriously slow time for movies because studios have already dropped their “quality pictures” (re: Oscar bait) back in December. Subsequently, it makes it difficult to come up with things to make fun of.
This week is different. It’s like a damn buffet of options. First, there is the pending release of Daredevil this Friday – Valentine’s Day. And I can think of NO other movie to take your sweetheart to.
Secondly, Oscar nominations are going to be announced on Tuesday. This fits in perfectly to the strip schedule, because I’m always working on stuff about 24 hours in advance.
Third, My Big Fat Greek Wedding comes out on DVD Tuesday. I think my stance on this steaming pile has been well documented, so I won’t go into it here. But that being said, I think we can all identify the comedic potential.
But when it was all said and done, I decided to make this week all about Daredevil. Be sure to check back on Wednesday and Friday. I’ve got continuity on deck and everything!
Daredevil is a movie that has swung left to right in terms of my level of excitement. When it was first announced, I kind of rolled my eyes because it was obvious that they were trying to capitalize on the success of Spider Man. Add to that, not many people know much about the character or his gothic style. Would it even translate to film?
Then, of course, learning that Mr. Chin — Ben Affleck — would be playing the title role sent me into a tizzy. I felt certain that I wasn’t going to believe him as the character. He’s a bloated jock to me. Too busy coming up with lines to get into a girl’s pants than being tortured and fighting crime. If you’ve seen him as the angsty yuppie in Changing Lanes, that’s about what I think he’s like all the time.
Some of the other casting choices were interesting as well. Jennifer Garner as Elektra? Not Greek, nor a proven actress. Michael Clark Duncan as The Kingpin? Uh, wasn’t the Kingpin white? All they got here is the bald head and a penchant for fancy suits. Colin Farrell as Bullseye? Interesting actor. Definite “bad boy” chops. But what’s up with that scar on his forehead and the iridescent, blue snake-skin trench coat? What were they thinking?
But as time goes by, I’m warming up to the cast and am genuinely excited about seeing the movie.
Lately, I’ve been watching a lot of Alais on ABC. Seeing Jennifer Garner in action has convinced me there really is no other woman “action hero” who could handle what’s required of Elektra’s ninja/assassin history.
Michael Clarke Duncan is making more sense, too. If anything, remember that this guy was nominated for Best Supporting Actor once. Damn shame he was involved in The Scorpion King, but I’ve also read that the studio went with him after several white wrestlers gave poor screen tests. When it comes down to it, I’d rather have a guy who can act.
I’m beginning to step around the poor costume design on Bullseye because I’ve heard Colin Farrell practically steals the film with his performance. There’s really a sick glee in his interpretation of the character, which I think will be fun to watch.
And finally, ole Benny-boy. Well, I take that back, I still can’t see this chuckle head as DD.
One last thing I’ll mention. If you’d like to test the awesomeness of your girlfriend of wife, draw a picture of them in a leather catsuit and see how they react. If they tell you “My character needs more cleavage.” like Cami did when I showed her today’s strip, then you’ll know exactly how awesome she is.
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First things first. Yes, today’s strip is a Valentine to my lovely wife Cami. I was going to go into a big, detailed explanation about how I decided to do this for her, but I think it stands on it’s own two legs.
If that doesn’t cut the mustard for you, let’s just say that I really like making a public spectacle out of myself. Sometimes it can come out in very bad ways that may embarrass Cami (she knows what I’m talking about). But in other ways, it is a powerful tool I can use to let the whole world know how much I love and appreciate her.
I have a web site. I have an audience. I followed my heart to the ultimate conclusion. I love you, Cami. Happy Valentine’s Day.
That being said, my Valentine’s Day got off to an excellent start Thursday night while I was preparing today’s strip. Checking the site statistics on a whim, I decided to look at my referral logs. Lo should my eyes damn near pop out of my head to discover that I had been linked from the main page of NEWS ASKEW!!!
For those of you not in the loop, News Askew is the web site for all things relating to Kevin Smith. Yes, that Kevin Smith. The writer/director of such favorites as Clerks, Mallrats, and Chasing Amy.
It’s a great place to go to get the inside scoop on all the projects he’s working on as well as have a little fun with the View Askew cannon of films. It’s a great community and I’ve been trolling around the site for years. That, and his new site Movie Poop Shoot are two stops on my daily web rounds. I’m totally bugging out just being recognized because I’m a big fan of Kevin’s. Just getting the link is like a brush with greatness!
So to all of the new readers coming in from News Askew, WELCOME! Please feel free to take a look around. You may need to start here to get a handle on the current story line and figure out why Ben Affleck is even hanging around in the first place.
If you like, you can start from the beginning and work yourself up to the present day. Ours is a fairly green operation. We’ve only 87 strips under our belt since opening in August of 2002. But hopefully Theater Hopper will be a place you check in on from time to time. If you can manage to swing by every Monday, Wednesday and Friday when we post new strips, that would be even better!
For any Ben Affleck fans out there, I hope you know that the last two strips where he is featured have all been in good fun. Of course, having him make a pass at one of my main characters probably doesn’t do much to dilute the “Ben’s gay!” perception among those who like to slag our resident Daredevil. But what are you going to do with a guy who played a character named Chesty Smith in School Ties? If that isn’t a gay porn name straight out of 1976, then I don’t know what is! 🙂
To all of my regular readers, I hope you have enjoyed the week of strips I’ve put together for you. I had a lot of fun doing them.
This whole week has been a real trip. Even before getting this link from News Askew, I was getting lots of positive feedback which is something I don’t get that often. Hell, I hardly get any feedback! So when I get an e-mail from one of you out there is a great validation. To know that you took time out of your day to pass along a compliment is very humbling to me. I want you to know I print off every one of those suckers. So then I can show them to my kids one day and say, “See?! Daddy WAS a success back in his day!”
Of course, they’ll be, like really young and won’t know the difference. But still…
Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone. Here’s hoping you have someone warm to share it with.
And because I’m in such a lovey-dovey mood, I’ve posted a new review written by my friend Nick. It covered How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days. A very fitting romantic film for the occasion.
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As promised, another comic. Part of the 5 day plan to help advance the little storyline we’ve got going here and burn through a little excess exposition. Is anyone else glad that we’re moving the action out of suburbia and into the theater? I know I am!
As time progresses, I am getting more and more positive feedback from readers who are starting to enjoy Charlie’s story arc. While I have had an opportunity to return everyone’s messages, I want to thank those of you who have written in to show your support. I appreciate it. I see now that going ahead with the story was the right decision to make.
Things may have been slow-going at first and maybe even a little painful. But that’s evolution in a nutshell. A little temporary pain and the result is something stronger and more beautiful. I’m now convinced that once this telling is complete, there will be a richer experience at the end of it for all of us.
Onto movies… I didn’t see Elektra this weekend and if the box office has anything to say about it, neither did many of you. Even though I was one of the few who honestly enjoyed its predecessor Daredevil (Ben Affleck be damned!), I felt no urge to see Jennifer Garner take the lead in the follow-up.
I mean, if you break it down to brass tacks, it’s pretty much a movie starring Garner running around in sexy outfits and kicking ass. Guess what? I can see that every week for free on a little show called Alias. I imagine Elektra is only going to draw the fan boy faithful.
By the way, if you want to see an image that will test the limits of said faithful, then vote for Theater Hopper at buzzComix to check out today’s incentive sketch.
One movie that I did see this weekend and thoroughly enjoyed was In Good Company. I don’t know what it is about Topher Grace I find so appealing, but all that talk about this being his breakout performance is right on the money. Grace is quick-witted and alert throughout his performance. He’s just a lot of fun to watch.
Dennis Quaid earns points as well going with a performance that was very confident and laid back without being lazy or above-it-all.
I didn’t used to like Quaid. I used to think he was kind of a jock and didn’t look smart enough to be an actor. All cock-sure strut, no substance. But as he’s aged, he’s become maybe one of a handful of leading men over 50 that’s I’ve enjoyed watching. You could lump Pierce Brosnan into this category as well.
I think what really struck home for me with In Good Company was that there aren’t really that many films aimed at men on an emotion level.
For example, women have all kind of movies that deal with their emotions, relationships and fears. Bridget Jones’s Diary, just to pull a name out of the hat, tackles everything from the fear of being single in your 30’s, being overweight and having trouble finding a good job. These are all emotional issues.
Movies for men only seem to focus on bigger explosions, more garish CGI candy, and occasionally naked breasts if the studio can get around a PG-13 rating.
But In Good Company is different. It’s about being in your 20’s and not knowing what you want to do with your life. It’s about being in your 50’s and being rendered ineffectual by the generation stepping in to replace you. It caught me off guard. You simply don’t see a lot of movies about men whose power is being leeched from them in this way. I found it a rewarding experience. You should go see it.
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Jan19
MAYBE HE DIDN’T WANT YOU TO LOOK TO THE RIGHT
January 19th, 2005 |
(6 votes, average: 7.50 out of 10)
In case you missed it, there was an extra comic yesterday. Expect another one tomorrow.
Today’s comic is something real-life Cami probably wouldn’t be very happy with. She doesn’t tend to appreciate the strips where I depict her as physically abusive. But it’s a light slap, honest! I just thought it seemed like one of those opportunities where the husband does something well-meaning and the wife flips it around on them like in some kind of family-friendly sitcom. Maybe I’ve been watching too much Everybody Loves Raymond.
In any case, you should really check out the buzzComix incentive sketch I put together. I think it really compliments today’s comic well. I’m really happy with it.
Not much to report at the moment. Oh, hey. The Fantastic Four trailer is online. You should check it out. It’s better than I thought it would be, but I’m still firmly planted in the “wait and see” camp. The Thing still doesn’t look quite right to me. They’re going to have to do something really impressive to wash off the stink of that direct-to-video Roger Corman version from 1994.
Did you notice that I have a few ad spots available? Don’t you think now would be a good time to fill them? I do. Check the advertisements page for all the info you’ll need to place a banner on the site. Pricing, availability, the works.
By the way, you should think about buying some buttons. They’re a lot of fun and I’m getting kind of antsy looking for an excuse to make some more!
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Apr27
GUEST STRIP – JOERULES AND MADMUP
April 27th, 2005 |- Comics »
- Comics »
- Guest Strip
(4 votes, average: 7.75 out of 10)
Today’s guest strip comes from a pair of collaborators who met inside our illustrious THorum – joerules from Digital Pimp Online and MadMup from… well, MadMup.com.
This actually isn’t the first time these two have paired up. They worked together to bring me a guest strip while I was away in Memphis last year. Just as they knocked it out of the part last time, they do so again! My character seems to have grown some hair since the last time Joe put pen to paper, but I ain’t complaining!
The real treat of today’s strip is the inside joke in the first panel. Keen eyed observers of the comic will understand it. But if it’s not leaping out at you, I’m not going to explain it – because it simply wouldn’t be as funny.
Anyway, as thanks for their hard work, I have drawn them at the very catalyst of their creative nexus! You can see what I’m talking about when you’re treated to the incentive sketch when you vote for Theater Hopper at buzzComix.
Do us all a favor and visit both Joe and Mup’s web sites. Joe has recently hit pay dirt with ANOTHER comic – this time taking aim at his favorite (crappy) movies. I’ve mentioned it in this space before. It’s called Joe Loves Crappy Movies! Check it out.
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