Posts Tagged ‘rats’
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This was actually supposed to be the comic you guys were get on Friday and the Live Free or Die Hard comic was the one you were supposed to get last Wednesday. Of course, since my computer completely melted down last Wednesday, the order is all screwed up.
I’m sure it makes no difference to you, but I enjoy being timely with the comics. It’s one advantage the web has over digital media. So, for me, it would have been a lot more fun if I could have gotten the LFoDH comic up on Wednesday when the movie started playing in theaters and having this Ratatouille comic up on Friday before the latest Pixar film was proven a success with a near $50 million opening weekend.
There has been so much crap written about Ratatouille and these concerns that it wouldn’t connect with audiences. Rats in a kitchen? Yech! French cuisine? Double yech! So what? If the story is good, the audience will be there. And I think word of mouth is only going to improve on this thing, from what I’ve been reading.
Marketing aside, the only red flag that came up for me is that the original director Jan Pinkava was replaced by Brad Bird. But then, that’s like having Nolan Ryan come in to finish out a pitching session for a rookie’s first time on the mound. Everything is going to be fine.
Shamefully, I didn’t get to see ANY movies this weekend due to my overwhelming computer issues. What a pain in the ass. I finally got a hold of a new hard drive Friday night and it pretty much took me the rest of the weekend off and on to get Windows XP and the rest of my software loaded back onto it. I didn’t really suffer any significant data loss, but it just takes SO MUCH TIME. Like, HOURS at a stretch, it seems. I don’t really have that kind of free time with Henry in the house. I pretty much stuck him with Cami all day Sunday. Father of the year, over here, gang.
At this point, my concern is falling behind. In addition to Ratatouille, both Cami and I want to see Sicko. But it’s a matter of finding the time and getting someone to babysit Henry. My radar is up for Transformers on Wednesday. Begrudgingly, I think I have to go to this one. Not particularly because I think it’s going to be a good movie (I certainly don’t respect the direction they went in regards to the robot designs) but because I feel like this is the movie everyone is going to be talking about.
In a way, Michael Bay and company were right to wait until the July 4 weekend. It seems like Spider-Man 3, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End and Shrek the Third all kind of blew their wad by landing in theaters back in May. No one is really talking about them now because I think they all kind of canceled each other out. I’m looking at the upcoming release schedule and I’m not really seeing anything that is going to challenge Transformers dominance. I mean, Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix will probably steal some of it’s thunder, but that’s the fifth movie in the franchise and – truthfully – haven’t we seen it all before?
I never thought I would find myself in the position of defending Bay or Transformers, but I really think it’s going to be the blockbuster to beat this summer. It’s going to show us something new. Or at least a big-screen version of a concept we’ve been waiting to see for the last 20 years.
However, unlike Sicko and Ratatouille, Transformers is a movie Cami has no interest in seeing. So I might be able to sneak out of the house Wednesday night after Henry is asleep and check it out for myself. I kind of hate that it’s come to this – me seeing these movies by myself. I used to really like dragging Cami along with me. But I’m kind of stuck between a rock and a hard place. I kind of have to see these bigger movies as part of my "job," but with a baby, you can’t drop what you’re doing and go see everything you want. I feel like I’m being selfish going by myself. But for the immediate future, this looks like the best solution for us.
Oh, well. What about the rest of you? Have you finally started to give in to the Transformers hype
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First things first. What I’m suggesting in the last three panels is true.
While this comic marks the LAST APPEARANCE of Jimmy and Charlie in Theater Hopper, it does NOT mark their last appearance in webcomics.
Jimmy and Charlie are moving to Multiplex.
This was an idea that I had started to kick around probably sometime this summer. It’s taken this long to move the chess pieces around to get us there.
I talked with Multiplex creator Gordon McAlpin several months ago. I followed up with him last week to see if he still might be interested in adopting Jimmy and Charlie once Theater Hopper ended.
As fortune would have it, he was still interested! So I went ahead and drew Jimmy and Charlie’s last Theater Hopper comic, knowing that I was sending them off into an unknown future. But a future where I at least knew they would be in good hands.
Not to pat myself on the back too hard, but I like this idea of handing Jimmy and Charlie over to Gordon for use in Multiplex for several reasons.
First of all, Gordon’s a hell of a writer and relationships are his specialty. Jimmy and Charlie have a rich background – one I invested a lot of time into. Their lengthy back story was not something I had really tried before as a writer. Turning these characters over to a writer as competent as Gordon ensures their story will continue in some form.
I also like the idea because – from what I’ve gathered – it’s somewhat unprecedented.
Now, web comics as a genre run pretty far and wide. So I could be completely off-base, but I’ve never heard of one creator handing over a set of characters to another creator like this.
Sure, characters change hands between writers and artists all the time. But usually they stay confined within the universe they were created in. How often has it occurred that a creator establishes characters in one universe and hands them over to a creator with their own established universe? It would be like Marvel turning to DC Comics and saying “Here. You can have Spider-Man from now on. Have fun with him!”
I don’t know. I could be completely wrong. If I am, I take it all back. I didn’t intend to offend. But I haven’t come across it in the last 10 years I’ve made web comics.
Lastly, the reason I like this idea is because it gives the people who supported Theater Hopper a place to land once the comic ends next week. My comic and Gordon’s comic have always had a close affiliation. I’m certain there is a lot of overlap between our fans. But in case there isn’t, Jimmy and Charlie showing up in Gordon’s comic gives my fans a conduit through which to explore one hell of a great comic in Multiplex. If you like Theater Hopper, I know you’ll find a lot to enjoy there.
Whatever happens, I told Gordon he’s free to do with the characters whatever he wants. If he decides to make Jimmy a serial killer and Charlie a lesbian, that’s his choice. The characters are his now to do with as he pleases. I don’t want Gordon to write the characters as I would have. I want to witness with everyone else the new places he takes them.
I don’t know for sure when Jimmy or Charlie will first appear in Multiplex, but Gordon indicated it would be sometime early next year – as soon as his current story line concludes. So help me keep an eye out for them, will you?
I’m very excited about this step forward. I think it’s unique and a lot of fun. I hope you guys feel the same way about it as I do.
If you could help spread the word about this comic, I would greatly appreciate it. I originally intended to upload it last Friday. But a blizzard that whipped through town last Wednesday left our home without power for over 24 hours. We were kind of scrambling to get things back together on the homefront and the Friday update didn’t happen.
A change like this is a blockbuster and I’m worried that not a lot of people are going to see it due to the holiday. If you’re reading this right now, MAKE SURE OTHERS SEE IT. Share it on Facebook or Twitter. Let your web comic reading friends know. Even if they don’t read Theater Hopper or Multiplex, the might get a kick out of what we’re doing. Who knows?
I have another comic that I intend to work on and update for Christmas. We’re doing another small leap forward in time so the comic I’m posting on Christmas actually takes place on Christmas. So be on the lookout for that.
After the Christmas comic, there will be one more comic this week. After that, the VERY LAST THEATER HOPPER WILL BE PUBLISHED MONDAY, DECEMBER 31.
Be there, guys. I can’t imagine it without you.
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
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