I hope everyone is catching the nod to the outstanding work of The Brothers Chaps and the infinite hilarity of their site Homestar Runner. If not, you need to check them out right now.
I don’t think it’s any big surprise that 2 Fast, 2 Furious pulled in the most bank this weekend. It faced no competition and was geared to that “target demo” that is so frivolous with its cash. And by “target demo”, I mean 15 year old boys.
It’s scary how well marketers know you and your spending habits. Don’t believe me? Look at the formula? Cars, guns, girls in tight clothes. Is that a movie for grandma? Of course not. So who goes? Kids with cash. If they have girlfriends, odds are they are dragging them along with ’em. It’s a double-whammy.
I would hope this scourge would be wiped off the face of movie screens everywhere after a week, but this weekends competition doesn’t look too strong. Dumb and Dumberer? Uh-oh.
Anyway, enough about money and marketing and all that boring crap. Let’s talk about the strip.
I was really shocked when I found out John Singleton was the director on 2F2F. It doesn’t really fit within his range of style. I mean, even when he’s pitching more toward the mainstream, he usually sticks closer to an urban theme – like he did in Shaft.
I just think it’s a damn waste that one of the most promising directors of the early 90’s – a guy who gave a very clear view into gang culture and violence in Boyz in tha Hood – could turn around and do something like 2F2F. Maybe I shouldn’t be too surprised. He DID direct Michael Jackson’s “Remember the Time” video. I think Wacko Jacko must have warped him.
I had a chance this weekend to sit down and watch The Animatrix. As expected, Cami wasn’t into it. I started watching it while she was reading a book. Protesting, she wondered why I didn’t wait to watch it until Wednesday night when she would be out of the house. No such luck, sweetcheeks!
For what it was worth, I thought it was okay. An interesting experiment more than anything. Some of them I had already seen online, so I kind of knew the score.
Of those I hadn’t seen, I really enjoyed “A Detective Story” and “Beyond” the most. The former more for its visual style and pacing and the latter for it’s taken on The Matrix and how it works.
If you haven’t seen it, “Beyond” sets up the premise where a house in The Matrix is “glitching” so the laws of gravity, physics, environment, et al don’t apply. Yet all the kids in the neighborhood are oblivious and just think it’s haunted. Very clever. If you’re at all interested in the mythology of the franchise, you should at least rent it.
I’m growing concerned that poster sales have stagnated. I’m curious as to why this is. I have an inkling that many of you are biding your time until the print run begins to dwindle and plan on snatching one up then. I’ve received a few e-mails to that effect.
So I’m trying to figure out a way to spur sales. Should I have Jared and Cami sign a poster, too? Should I drop the price? What are your thoughts. Hit me up in the forum and let me know.
Lastly, I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who e-mailed me in regard to the whole Top Web Comics episode I spoke of on Friday. Many of you were very supportive and said nice things about the comic to boot. I appreciate that.
I still don’t know what I’m going to do in regard to the reminders (i.e. frequence, discontinuation), but it’s good to know you guys are out there reading this. It’s nice to know someone is listening.
I’m kind of in a weird place right now. Summer is around the corner and always at this time of year I step back and take stock of things. I feel like I’ve been sitting still for too long. I need to start moving again. Just to know I can. I need to do more – be more. Make things better.
Thanks for putting up with any “glitches” of my own during this period. I should be back to normal in a little while.
A quick post this morning before I come back with more.
Before you ask, yes the bi-plane in the background is a direct reference to Homestar Runner.
Don’t ask me why I threw it in there. I just thought it would be funny, I guess.
I’ll be back later in the afternoon with more!
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May 10, 2006 | FOR REFERENCE |
Hey, guys. I’m back. But first, I gotta take care of some site business.
In case you didn’t see the ad in the upper right, I am currently running a sale on all t-shirts and baby doll tees. All clothing in the store is $9.99 until July 31. I’m trying to burn off some inventory to raise money for my trip to Wizard World Chicago on August 4 – 6.
Incidentally, if you order a t-shirt or baby doll tee during this period, you get a free 11 x 17" poster. It’s a pretty sweet deal, so order today!
I should probably also mention that I got the proofs for Theater Hopper: Year One back from the printer the other day. I poured over them and gave them my stamp of approval, so that means the books will go into production starting next week! We’re still on time for our end of July deadline, so those of you who pre-ordered a book will probably see your copy sometime in early August.
I gotta thank all of you again for helping me out with the pre-sale. With the proofs in my hands this week, it all became that much more real and it has me pretty psyched. You guys are gonna LOVE this book when you get it. Of course it’s never too late to still place an order if you haven’t already. Especially now that you know the books are on their way! Think about it!
I want to make sure you guys know about the current batch of sponsors we have on the site. Be sure to check out Aoi House for fun manga action, Dribble For Kids for great comic book-style sci-fi action, Monkey Pirate Zombie for, well… really cool comics, animation and games, and finally Brinkerhoff for some really wry commentary on relationships and what happens after they end.
I was going to say some stuff about the comic, but all those links made me really tired. I suppose I can say that I was very happy with the way this one turned out – both the art and the writing. Sometimes it’s fun just to do something simple, y’know?
Will Cami and I see Click this weekend? Most likely. She is, after all, an Adam Sandler junkie. Last night she tossed Big Daddy into the DVD player. To what end, I’m not sure. Maybe to remember what it’s like to watch an Adam Sandler movie? A little mental exercise. She fell asleep watching it, if that means anything.
Have a great weekend!