Today's Gag Comic.

Considerably Better than what's out there now.

Finding a funny comedy these days is difficult. I'm talking about the kind of comedy that actually makes you laugh, unlike most out there these days that make you groan, shudder and curse that you wasted $9 to see this crap. I've been told by the press and magazines that Borat is the funniest thing on celluloid since the birth of film, but I tend not to believe the overzealous press. (and no folks, just because something has made oodles of cash, does not make it good. If that were true, Titanic would be the greatest film of all time).

And it ain't.

Instead of the more hyped films I went for a movie who's creative team already has a winning track record. The other day I saw For Your Consideration. It's the latest movie by Christopher Guest and his troupe of improv cast. This Is Spinal Tap, Waiting For Guffman and Best In Show are prime examples of VERY funny films. No guys getting kicked in the crotch, no old ladies rapping, and most importantly, no Adam Sandler.

This time, Guest and his cast take aim at Hollywood. More importantly, the selling of Hollywood. How an off handed rumor can grow into an uncontrollable monster turning a small, personal film into an Oscar seeking missile.

Guest plays director Jay Berman who's helming a film called "Home for Purim".
"Home for Purim" is a drama set in the 1940's American South centering around a dying mother as their family gathers for what could be their final Purim, an obscure Jewish holiday.

When word of Oscar buzz for "Home for Purim" gets out, everyone from the actors to the producers to the studio heads begin to take it as gospel. The change from a heartwarming, small film to a more viewer friendly film is funny, but the change of the veteran actors is even more funny-and sad in a way.

That's where For Your Consideration works. It has that hard to watch type of humor (which was mastered on the BBC version of The Office) You cringe (and can't help but laugh) at the evolution of "Home for Purim's leads, Marilyn Hack (Catherine O'Hara) & Victor Allan Miller (Harry Shearer). You really can't fault their desire to finally get public accolades, for their years and years of hard, mostly unnoticed work on the screen. But it's their pathetic appearances on the hype machine, Talk shows, Radio Shock shows, MTV-esque "Hip" shows and "Entertainment Tonight" shows, is where the humor really excels.

And of course, Fred Willard steals every scene he's in!

All of that said, For Your Consideration, at times, does miss it's mark. At times I was reminded of episodes of SCTV. For awhile SCTV ran a sketch called "The Days of the Week", that made fun of Soap Operas. The sketch though was so perilously close to it's source that it was hard to tell the spoof from the real thing. There are stretches of this film that feel that way. The "Home for Purim" scenes are so dead on that the spoof, at times, doesn't work.

For Your Consideration isn't as good as Guests earlier films and that may be in part to our expectation. We the audience are entering the film demanding that they top themselves but in reality they may have gone to the well once too often.



So even though it didn't meet all my expectations, I still have to give For Your Consideration a Considered:

Today's Gag Comic.

Today's Gag Comic.

The latest Action Figure; From the Journals of Richard Marzelak review

With this being the holiday weekend I've been working on various comics, pencils for Action Figure #2 and have been seeing some of the new movies that are out. But before I post any of those comics or movie reviews, here's another Action Figure #1 online review!

This one is from Bloggity-Blog-Blog-Blog:

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

Action Figure: From the Journals of Richard Marzelak: "Late" by Richard Marcej. Published by Baboon Books, order through the website.

This is a surprisingly fun book. Richard Marcej worked at Hasbro during the Transformers explosion, and this is a semi-autobiographical look on those days, in the form of the fictional Richard Marzelak. The book starts with a framing sequence that doesn't seem to have much to do with the rest of the tale. It then jumps into Richard's normal work day, with just a touch of fantasy (done in red) to move the story along.

I found the story fascinating, and when I finished I felt a pang that this book didn't get enough orders for Diamond to distribute it. The fact is, it's good. It's a unique story drawing on life experiences from a critical time in the toy industry. I don't know about most of my readers, but the early 80's, when Richard was at Hasbro, hold a lot of memories of toys for me. Thus, the look inside a fictional Hasbro is strangely thrilling.

My biggest complaint about the book would be the framing sequence, which made the title into a pun but otherwise didn't seem to have any function in the story. If I hadn't read the notes on the inside front cover, the framing sequence would have put me off the story a bit. Fortunately, it's only 4 pages out of 32 pages of comic story, so I can't really complain much. Once into the tale of Richard, the story pulled me in. Everyone recognizes the lousy job situation, but this one has the fun fantasies, and the novelty of being about what some of us would consider a dream job.

I liked this enough that I would read a second issue, and maybe even a third even if the second one wasn't as good. If you want a different sort of book looking into a bit of popular culture from a completely different point of view, get this book. For me, I'm calling it Recommended. Read a preview, then order it.

And as always, for those interested, you can see preview pages click here
and buy it click here.

Happy Thanksgiving!

As we gather together to celebrate Thanksgiving 2006 we're missing something.

No, not the large cartoon character balloons at the parades, we still got them.

No, not the annual NFL double header. In fact, this year we get three games!

What is it?

The Mystery Science Theater 3000 Turkey Day Marathon!

*sigh*
I miss those great 24 hour marathon's of lousy movies being skewered by Joel, Servo and Crow T. Robot on Comedy Central.

In honor of this lost tradition I think I'll head to the theatre today and shout out insults at the screen.

Sometimes a Banana is just a Banana

This image is making the rounds on the net and since I like to write and post about toys here, might as well chime in.

Well, there's not much more I can add here, except, if you're wondering what to get the girl who has everything this Christmas.... (curious? you can see more about it here)

Today's Gag Comic.

Here's what they're saying about Action Figure; From the Journals of Richard Marzelak

Ok, ok, I'll tone down on linking/printing the reviews I've been getting for Action Figure; From the Journals of Richard Marzelak after the holidays...really.

But until then...

Here's a review from The Comics Review a site that, well, ast the name states, reviews comics!

- The Comics Review
So i get this package from Baboon Books in the mail the other day, which is weird, since I forgot to update my new address with Chris, TCR's interview admin. I had talked to, via email in 2005 to Richard Marcej over there, and he sent me a christmas card, and some info on a book called Action Figure he was working on. In the Baboon Books envelope was a review copy of Action Figure: From the Journals of Richard Marzelak, and a note. He said that the book _was_ supposed to be the start of a quarerly series, but since the advance order for Diamond didn't make their minimum, which, while not extreme, is high enough that a book without much buzz isn't going to get distributed, which is unfortunate.

I read the book, and enjoyed it enough that i would like to see the next issue, and see where Richard is going.

Starting off the book about 47 years in the future, we see a guy at an estate sale, where he stumbles upon lots of collectibles, but winds up with a more rare fine, the Journals of Richard Marzelak. Richard Marzelak is the semi-fictional main character of this semi-autobiographical book. He works for Hasmark, which is a toy and greeting card company, designing packaging for toys, and spends his nights having lots of sexual interludes with hot babes... ok, he spends his nights trying to make it as a cartoonist. It introduces us to the nose-picking evil boss who gives the job he's been working on to "the new guy", the best friend co-worker Bill, the "new guy" who is really the new girl, and a couple of the other office co-workers and potential hazards to career advancement. Richard also has quite an imagination, daydreaming (cleverly done in red/black, contrasting from the black/white art in the rest of the book). The hook for the hopeful next issue is The Big One, a contract to do the package art for "Bot-Changers", and the selection of the team.

While my quick summary doesnt sound all that funny, Richard has quite a great sense of humor, and it's on every page. Obvious things from his former life as a toy packaging designer and logo designer for Hasbro and greeting card artist for Hallmark make for a lot of subtle humor (Has-Mark anyone?) While most of you might not know it, if you were a child of the 80's, his art might look familiar to you, since he was one of Hasbro's artists for that little toy line, Transformers, in the 80's. KICK ASS!

The art is great, he puts a lot more into faces than most, giving off the emotions and intentions of the characters, which adds a lot to the book. His fake box art for Hasmark is pretty great too. As i said earlier, the daydreaming/dreaming being colored in red really makes those moments pop out.

I hope that you will go to www.baboonbooks.com and pick up a copy, and encourage Richard to continue his story...and tell your LCS to carry this book, word of mouth can definately make a book!

-e

Writing Rating: (8.5/10)
Artistic Rating: (8/10)
Overall Rating: (8.5/10)

And as always, for those interested, you can see preview pages click here
and buy it click here.

Today's Gag Comic.

This Bond Bleeds

There have always been franchise films in Hollywood. From the old Hope & Crosby Road pictures to the Planet of The Apes series in the early 70's. The longest running and most known throughout the globe though has to be the Bond series.

The run that began with Dr. No in 1960 has now reached the 21st film of the series, and in my opinion one of the best, Casino Royale.

In the past when we've reached the final film with a particular Bond actor, it's very apparent that a change is necessary. Connery's final, Diamonds Are Forever was OK, but Brosnan's last go as Bond (Die Another Day) and Moore's finale (A View To A Kill) were horrendous pieces of crap that made you want to bludgeon yourself to death as you watched every miserable minute in the theatre.

Yes, they were that bad.

But the follow up, the next Bond film with a new Bond actor are usually well worth the wait, and made up for the miserable dreck that preceded.

Daniel Craig's first outing as Bond, Casino Royale, finally answers the question, can anyone play Bond as good as or better than Connery in his heyday?

YES!

The makers of Casino Royale smartly introduce Craig by taking us back to the beginning of Bond's career. How he "earns" his 007 distinction is revealed in a clever up front way that sets the tone for the entire picture.

No sooner has the film started then we're greatly entertained by an incredible foot chase through construction sites and building tops that put many car chases to shame. The film's plot? The new double-naught spy must find terrorist banker, La Ciffre (another creepy Bond villain, this one weeps blood) and defeat him at an extremely high stakes poker game.

Along the way an old friend is revealed (well, an old friend to long time Bond viewers) and Bond falls in love with Vesper Lynd, the gorgeous accountant who's there to keep track of Bond (and the Queen's) funds.

While watching a high stakes poker game may not sound interesting (and hell, you could easily stay home and watch it on ESPN) there's enough going on that makes this game especially deadly.

The romance in this film reminds me of Bond's relationship in On Her Majesty's Secret Service where 007 met, married then lost the love of his life. The relationship in this film helps to stabilize the raw, headstrong spy and REALLY helps to set up the ending.

Ah....movie endings. How many films have we sat in darkened theaters watching, enjoying and (dare I say) loving until WHAM!!! we have to endure a putrid, pathetic, HORRIBLE ending that helps to ruin the previous 2+ hours.

But not here.

While watching Casino Royale, even though I was enjoying the picture something felt off, it seemed as if it was missing something. Then came the ending.

YES! The last 10 minutes of Casino Royale not only ties up the picture but more importantly leaves you with a huge grin on your face and the thought, "I can't WAIT for the next Bond picture!"

Sure, the series is 21 films old, but like fine wine, with new blood Daniel Craig and a back to the basics approach, it's not getting old, it's getting better!



I give Casino Royale a shaken, but not stirred:

Today's Gag Comic.

A Double Dose of Reviews!

In my continuing quest to get word out about my comic Action Figure; From the Journals of Richard Marzelak to the masses, here's not one, but two more online reviews!

Both are from an excellent online Comic Site, Comics Should Be Good!:

The first was Posted by Greg Burgas, Thursday, October 26th, 2006

I got this in the mail last week, which was a bit surprising, considering it was supposed to be out in January.  (Marcej has had some personal issues, so I’m not bashing the lateness of the book, just commenting on the fact that it’s a long time to wait, so much so that I had forgotten about it.)  I’m not sure when it arrives in stores, but it’s something to look out for.  Or you could just order it at the web site above.

The issue itself is pretty good, with a nice conceit - a guy works at a big toy company designing various things, has issues at his job, but it also dreaming of striking out on his own.  It’s certainly not the most original idea, but Marcej does a good job with a few things - his character, Richard Marzelak, daydreams a lot, and the black-and-white of the book gets red highlights, which is a nice touch.  The daydreams themselves are nice - they’re relatively mundane things, like when he wishes a hot woman would actually talk to him - but the way Marcej sets them off from the rest of the actual mundane world is well done.  Marzelak himself is a good character - he whines and he’s pathetic at spots, but he also does his job even though his boss keeps putting him on crappy assignments and he loves to work deep into the night on his own comic strip.  It’s a subject matter - the lousy office - that could easily devolve into either cruel parody (like Office Space, which I love, by the way) or pathos, but Marcej keeps it whimsical enough so that even though it’s not as savagely funny as Office Space, it’s still wryly amusing.

Marcej does a nice job on the art, too.  The framing story is that a couple finds Marzelak’s journal at an estate sale in 2053, and we’re reading the journals with them.  The art from the future is a bit hazy and muted, which gives it an unreal quality to it, while the art describing what’s going on in the journals is much sharper and well-defined.  Marcej isn’t going to set the world on fire with the art, but he does a fine job making sure the large cast is distinguishable from each other and he manages to keep things lively in a pretty static environment, even when Marzelak isn’t daydreaming.

The biggest problem I had with the book is the exposition.  Marcej does almost too good a job trying to introduce everyone and allowing us to get into Marzelak’s head.  It’s clunky at some points, which is the mark of a neophyte comics writer, at least from what I’ve read.  As they’re working in a visual medium, not everything needs to be written out.  We can infer a lot from drawings and from simply understanding the characters.

Other than that, this is a fun little book.  It gives us a nice look at what goes on behind the scenes at a big toy company (Marcej worked at Hasbro, so it’s based on that) and all the politics involved, which are similar but subtly different from other companies.  It’s a chaming comic, and it will be interesting to see if Marcej simply gets Marzelak to quit his job and draw his comic strip full-time, which would be uplifting but possibly dull, or if there will be something more meaty down the line.
Why this issue of Action Figure is the greatest issue ever!!!!  Two words: Samurai Pandas.  You read that correctly!

The second was Posted by Brad Curran, Monday, October 30th

• Action Figure #1- This is the first issue of Richard Marcej’s semi-autobio comic about his time working for a toy company. I don’t read a whole lot of autobio comics, but this seems like a pretty novel premise to me. I’m not sure I can say much more about this than the prolific Mr. Burgas didn’t say in his review column last week, but I’ll give it a shot anyway. I liked the use of red in the fantasy sequences. Marcej is a good, solid story teller. I don’t think he’d be out of place doing a Harvey Pekar story. He knows how to use exagerration without overdoing it, which is important in a story that’s taking place in an office. Marcej says that the series is “part humor (but not overly funny)”, which is pretty accurate. It isn’t uproariously funny, but there is some humor to be found here. It’s not the Office or Office Space or anything, but that’s not the tone Marcej is going for (although I do think a cameo from Dwight or Bill Lumberg would make this book better. Of course, that would make a lot of books better. That could have totally saved Infinite Crisis).
• The thing that impressed me most about this comic, though, was the production value, especially for a publisher I’d never heard of before Marcej sent me some promotional material for this book some months back. It’s comparable to single issues of Love and Rockets in that regard (at least the recent ones I’ve picked up), with a nice cardstock cover and quality paper, which is pretty impressive, especially since, from what I can tell from their website and my copy of issue #1, Marcej is basically self publishing.
• It’s $3.50, but between the quality of the package and the fact that that isn’t much of a disparity from your average mainstream comic anymore, I certainly can’t hold that against it. You’re getting a good chunk of story, solidly written and drawn, that isn’t printed on toilet paper for only .50 more than an issue of Batman runs for these days (my ignorance of indie comics is showing, isn’t it?). Don’t let the price scare you away, is what I’m saying.
• If you’re a fan of of autobio/slice of life comics and looking for something with a different premise, you might want to give this a look. You can find out more about it at the Baboon Books website. And for yet another review, if mine and Greg’s aren’t enough to satisfy you, you can check out Jog’s. And you should. Because it’s better than mine and Greg’s. Combined. It has the added bonus of not being as exhaustive as a lot of his stuff can be. Give it a look.


And as always, for those interested, you can see preview pages click here
and buy it click here.

Today's Gag Comic.

Yes, a FIFTH Action Figure #1 Review!

OK, yes, this is another disguised plug for my new comic Action Figure; From the Journals of Richard Marzelak, but hey, one of the functions of this Blog IS to push my work, so there you go.

Today's review is from the Blog, Focused Totality:


Action Figure #1

I wish I could say I picked up Action Figure: From The Journals Of Richard Marzelak at my local comic store, but that's not the case. Although the debut issue of the series was solicited through Diamond, it didn't meet order minimums. And we all know what that means. It's a shame this book didn't make it onto comic store shelves for at least a couple of reasons.

First, the professionalism behind Action Figure is apparent in every step - quality production values, excellent art, a story just off the beaten path. While VampireLesbianTitExplosion keeps on selling enough to make it through Diamond's policies, quality productions like this (and others) get left behind because they are not stroking a particular fanboy bone. Diamond gets to run its own business, and at times I agree with their "Survival Of The Retail Fittest" policies. There's a difference, though, between series that have a proven track record of poor sales, and a series that isn't even allowed to try and build that track record in the first place. I have no idea if Action Figure could become a hit, but I can say with certainty that it won't achieve that status without some presence in shops. I don't doubt that some self copies would have sold just off the strength of that engaging cover ... assuming there were shelf copies to be had.

Second is that though there are problems in this first issue, it shows tremendous promise ... promise that can only be realized by continuing work and feedback. Art needs an audience - it's part of the learning curve - and I hope Richard Marcej can find one though his all-out carpetbombing of the WeboComicsblogoNet and his easy-to-use web shop. The simplest and best praise I can five a first issue is this: I want to see more Action Figure. It's far from perfect, but it is charming, filled with passion, features some wonderful cartooning, and has a disticnt voice. Although Richard Marcej is new to comic books, his experience in cartooning and design is readily apparent.

The biggest weaknesses in the book come right at the front, a barrier before heading into the meat of the story. Both the introductory letter from the author and the curious framing sequence serve the same purpose: to let us know what an accomplished, important man Richard Marcej is. The framing sequence pertains to his alter-ego "Richard Marzelak", but using the phrase "thinly-veiled" would be overstating the case by implying the existence of some sort of veil. Besides the general off-putting own-horn-tooting of it all, it's also committing the cardinal sin: it is a lot of tell and not much show. I'm being handed the curriculum vitae of Richard Marcej/Marzelak, as if it matters. As a reader, I want an entertaining story about interesting people and things: I don't care about truth or credentials or importance. Outside of comics, Harvey Pekar is anything but accomplished and important ... how he observed life and told stories made him a success, not his resume.

Once past that initial hurdle, the book starts to come to life. The art style loosens considerably, and really starts to drive this story of office politics, art, and their uneasy coexistence. There are a few too many cliches peppered through out: dreams of flying by someone who feels trapped, adventures in being late for work, bosses who exist purely as obstacle, too-witty banter by officemates. It edges toward s sitcom, but what begins to carry the book and make it stand out is the character of Richard Marzelak. Once past the aggrandizing bits at the beginning, a whole different character emerges, and one not totally unlike the aforementioned Pekar. Marzelak is a bitter dreamer, illuminated in flashes of optimism and despair. He causes most of his own problems, and it's those moments when you realize that he's not entirely sympathetic that really make the book. He's more complex than his label of "struggling cartoonist". Is is his failures - not his gleaming resume - that make the character interesting.

I hope that web sales or other distribution methods will help Action Figure find a life apart from Diamond. It's an interesting book, and promises to become more so as Richard Marcej grows as a storyteller. The art's there, the production values are there, the characters are there: all that's needed now is the storytelling and the ability to let the work speak for itself. I'm looking forward to Action Figure #2.

And as always, for those interested, you can see preview pages click here
and buy it click here.

Today's Gag Comic.

It's a Christmas Miracle!

OK, perhaps "Miracle" might be a bit strong, but yesterday I took the artwork for my 2006 Chrtistmas Card to the printers! Yes, a week before Thanksgiving and I've not only come up with an idea for this year's card, but completed the artwork and will be picking up the printed cards next Friday. Yeesh, I'll actually have many of the cards sent before December 1!

Yes, a Christmas Miracle indeed.

For those of you reading this currently not on my Christmas list, if you'd like to get a card all you have to do is
order any of my books here.

Yes, it's a Christmas personal plug!

Today's Gag Comic.

More of my current work at K'NEX

Here are a few more package comps from October's Toy Fair.
This picture is for the new look for all the Amusment Park rides (Ferris Wheels, Roller Coasters, etc...). The main look for this packaging will be foil printing on the main color and in the parts and words of the masthead.

This is a brand new Toys R Us exclusive "Bucket of Bricks" package. With K'Nex introducing bricks into their product line this year this is one of the best ways of showing all the new possible builds that kids can make.

I'll post more when I get new packaging to show.

Today's Gag Comic.