Last month, the Comics Journal collated a nearly twenty year old debate between James Kochalka and others (including Jim Woodring) that started with the declaration that “Craft if the enemy.” Now I understand the context of Incredible Change Bots.
Eliot Spitzer’s running for office again with a bid for city comptroller. This follows fellow disgraced Democrat Anthony Weiner’s ascendance in the polls in the race for mayor.
John Romita Sr. discusses which actress inspired Mary Jane Watson.
Queryshark is still a lot of fun.
Gilbert Cruz argues that Lone Ranger represents everything wrong with Hollywood. One wrinkle…
The Lone Ranger is as much a movie about sidekick Tonto as it is about the titular masked man. It’s a choice that makes sense, given that the Native American is played by Johnny Depp in full, mugging Jack Sparrow mode. You don’t pay Johnny Depp money and then shunt him to the side. As a result, the movie must make its way through not just one, but a pair of origin stories, as we learn both how lawman John Reid (Armie Hammer) became the masked avenger as well as how face-painted, dead-bird–wearing Tonto became the wandering outcast of this version. The Lone Ranger spends a good chunk of time marking off origin-story checklist items and very little time on the actual lone ranging. But, if you’re going to try to establish a franchise, the origin story must be told, especially with a character as obscure to current audiences as the Lone Ranger. As a result, there’s a heavy sense of obligation and Catch-22-ness to the entire task. Here’s a suggestion, Hollywood — try starting a series in media res. Give us a story that works and then, if you’re lucky enough to earn a sequel, you can give us flashes of an origin tale down the road, as opposed to weighing down your first movie.
‘The Town’ purports to reveal what Washingtonians say about the other people in the town.
What Would Spidey Do? 