In Timeslip, a hot artist of today is taken back to 1962 to get handed an assignment by Stan Lee. So what happens when Tim Sale, who's quite used to drawing the past (year 1 stories for Batman, Superman, Spider-Man and Daredevil) and the future for that matter (Heroes) is taken back to replace Bill Everett by his new friend Hiro?He gets handed this assignment:
And he comes up with...
At this point in the experiment, artists aren't asked to work on the concept per se, so it's really just a costume change, but this Daredevil probably trades more on fear than fists. Hell's Kitchen really does become a sort of hell, and I wonder how much pitchforking the comics code would really have allowed (send Hiro to stop Wertham from writing Seduction of the Innocent immediately!).What do you think of this interpretation? Cool Batmanizing of the character? Spawn of Spawn? Better than the yellow costume, but not as good as the red? leave your comments at the pentacle.
306. DuetFORMULA: The Defector + Chain of Command + I, BorgWHY WE LIKE IT: The performances. The double talk.WHY WE DON'T: I can't think of a reason.REVIEW: If you press me about what my favorite DS9 episode is, I'm likely as not to name this one. Duet is a simple series of conversations between Kira and Marritza, but wow. Harris Yulin is an incredible actor, portraying his Cardassian character's many layers admirably. The analogy is to a member of the Nazi party, complicit but horrified. His byzantine plan to make Cardassia face up to its crimes is, well, Cardassian, and his dissembling put-on to Kira will ultimately serve her story arc and expose her very soul (something brewing since Battle Lines). This time, without the OTT emoting.Duet is also an exploration of both characters' guilt, of the politics of fear, of hatred for one's enemy so long as it is faceless. The performances are full of energy and ultimately, pathos. Marritza's parody of Gul Darh'eel is terrifying and unbelievable, but exactly what she expects (wants!) to hear. When his lies come crashing down around him, he lets ogo of the pretense and gives in to despair. Rewatching their verbal sparring, when we know what's really up, you can see Yulin's layered ambiguity.There are other wonderful touches. Kira, looking to the Wormhole for counsel... or towards Opaka? And that epilogue. Just when you think a Kira story has gone for the pat ending and platitudes, Marritza is assassinated and Kira, in a spontaneous epiphany, lets go of the hate. It's a wrenching moment and another downbeat ending for her.LESSON: If we haven't seen Garak again, it's because he doesn't trust Odo to keep the drunken killers off the Promenade.REWATCHABILITY - High: Terribly intense, it proves that the best of Trek isn't about special effects and high concepts, but about characters and strong performances. Simply wonderful.
Part 2 begins with, as the cover leads us to believe, all the actually kickass characters chained up in a Markovian dungeon...
Batman's trying to deal without any chips here. If Bedlam was after him (like say, the Joker might be on any givem day), then his request would make sense. But since Bedlam wants to take over Markovia, letting any superhero go would be counterproductive. You might say Batman's not making any sense, but I prefer to think he's "channelling Mike Barr".
Oh I just hate someone who starts a sentence with "Too", don't you? How being selfless makes Bats a "worthy adversary for Baron Bedlam" is unknown, though again, I surmise someone's "channelling".
Poor Rex! Bedlam knows ghetto hero Black Lightning, but not the Haney-created Metamorpho. Truly, he is a heathen. Thankfully, Rex is having some kind of dream where he's kissing Sapphire Stagg, so he doesn't notice the slight.
Batman is such a glory hound, the spotlight's always got to be on him. Gee Bats, can't you give the other guys a turn?
...or hurl in his direction. Whatever works.
Speaking of hurling, that chins shot is making me queasy. Either that or the dialogue. (Oh, and remind me never to take a toy away from a future despot.)
Tomorrow: The incredible origin of Baron Bedlam!
Following from Doctor Who #75: Robot...And again, these are all wonderful DVD packages that include an audio commentary by surviving cast and crew (Elisabeth Sladen is always charming, and while Tom Baker does some of these, he's always something of a loon - I call him the UK's answer to William Shatner, if that makes any sense to you), dense production note subtitles, brand new making of documentaries and photo galleries.
Doctor Who #76: The Ark in Space (Rodney Bennett, 1975)Starring the 4th Doctor, Sarah Jane and Harry. Purportedly where Ridely Scott got the idea for Alien, Who couldn't yet permit itself to go dark enough, so it's al lot of white corridors and aliens made of bubble pack. Still, there are some great speeches and this particular crew works well together (despite Harry being a real idiot). The DVD also includes CGI replacements for the dodgy model scenes, which is a neat option, an unused credit sequence, and an original BBC news report on Who.
Doctor Who #77: The Sontaran Experiment (Rodney Bennett, 1975)Starring the 4th Doctor, Sarah Jane and Harry. Continuing on directly from the last story, the Sontarans return in a short 2-parter. It's a good piece of business that doesn't wear off its welcome. While I was led to believe the DVD would be "cheap", it's really isn't thanks to a fun Sontaran framing sequence on the documentary. The kind of fun bit that adds value to these releases. The bad Photoshop on the Region 1 covers continue to be a disappointment though.
Doctor Who #78: Genesis of the Daleks (David Maloney, 1975)Starring the 4th Doctor, Sarah Jane and Harry. The Doctor goes back in time to the very origin of the Daleks to try and prevent them from ever coming into being. It features the first appearance of the Daleks' creator Davros, and while he would become something of a crutch in later stories, here he's pitch perfect. It's a strong tale about a Time Lord's responsibility to the timeline and about ethnic hatred. The DVD further includes a documentary on the Daleks, and a Blue Peter moment with a Dalek collection.
Doctor Who #82: Pyramids of Mars (Paddy Russell, 1975)Starring the 4th Doctor and Sarah Jane. When people as me where they should begin to sample classic Who, I usually tell them to try Pyramids of Mars. Baker and Sladen are at their strongest, and the gothic Hammer Horror direction the show took in the mid-70s is in full swing, and doing very well indeed. The effects let it down a bit in the fourth episode, but really, who can resist Sutekh's wonderful voice? This strong release is supplemented by a hilarious "where is he now?" spoof on Sutekh, deleted scenes, location visits and a documentary on the Philip Hinchcliffe era.
Doctor Who #87: The Hand of Fear (Lennie Mayne, 1976)Starring the 4th Doctor and Sarah Jane. Sarah Jane's farewell story was the very first Who I ever saw (while spending my first summer in Texas when I was 12), and then the second Who I ever saw (back in Canada some years later on PBS). A creepy hand that moves by itself, the "Eldrad MUST live" you can't get out of your head, and a very well done goodbye scene (all too rare for Doctor Who), all make this a classic. The DVD further supplies a Swap Shop interview with Tom Baker and Lis Sladen, some continuity announcements for the true completists (often included, but hardly worth mentioning) and what's become a staple on later releases: old Doctor Who Annuals and Radio Times billings in .pdf format.But what did YOU think? Next: Doctor Who: The Robots of Death to City of Death...
305. Dramatis PersonaeFORMULA: Masks + The Game + Power PlayWHY WE LIKE IT: An edgy political thriller.WHY WE DON'T: It doesn't really star our characters.REVIEW: The majority of the cast is gets infected with a "telepathic matrix" and must reenact an ancient power struggles. On TNG, you'd immediately know something was up. On DS9, the struggle is based on very real conflict, so it keeps you wondering longer. And while the roles they must take aren't too divorced from their actual personalities, they're still playing someone else, and that makes the episode a little inconsequential.Odo is the key. Unaffected because he doesn't have a proper brain, we see the story through his detective eyes. And it's quite wonderful how he manipulates the various characters to resolve the situation (Bashir especially). Poor Quark isn't affected either, but he gets thrown about and insulted for his trouble. And though he's not himself at the time, we do get to see Sisko's martial arts for the first time. They'll be useful for fighting Klingons and Jem'Hadar later.But while Dramatis Personae is perfectly good political thriller, the framing of it leaves something to be desired. There are plot holes you can fly a shuttle through, which could have been dealt with very easily, by leaving the telepathic balls responsible in the Klingon cruiser's wreckage. Instead we have this nonsense of a telepathic infection that is sometimes visible, sometimes not, that can be sucked out into space, that can be transmitted to multiple people by a single man, and that isn't communicated to others after that. That, and we spend way too much time on scrambled Klingon tapes. My mind tended to wander during those shots.The ending is likewise flawed, with Kira's ridiculous apology and Sisko's creepy look at the clock, as if he was still under control...LESSON: "I was taken over by an alien entity" isn't an excuse.REWATCHABILITY - Medium: A perfectly watchable "the crew aren't themselves" episode - the actors clearly have fun with it - marred by poor editing choices and a science fantasy premise.
My analysis of Batman and the Outsiders #1 was such a success that I just have to finish the story with #2. Here's the surprising cover:
Surprising because...-All the established heroes are out for the count and have to get their butts saved by the three rookies.-Baron "cookie cutter tyrant" Bedlam gets top credit. Above Batman.-If the Baron pulls that lever, he may well win the Superman III Movie Sweepstakes! Noooooooooooooo.I'll be here all week. Now, I'll leave you to laugh at Bedlam's haircut in the Comments section.
Canadian Thanksgiving isn't the big deal the American version is. Mostly just a day off from work or minor religious holiday. But it's still a good idea to give thanks for the things that make life good.Real Life Thanks
-I am of course thankful they took my mom off chemo for a few months since the it's really put the cancer on the run. She's Wolverine, that one.-For my job which, for all my crabbing thse days, is really fulfilling and challenging.-For my big, stupid black cat. Some might say it's sad he's the love of my life, but hey, he won't leave and take half my stuff, right?-And for my improv troupe allowing me to see and play the very best improv of my entire life.And now... Geek Thanks-For the return of Doctor Who.-For PhotoShop. It knows why.-For Shakespeare. There's no way I'd be who I am without his inventing me. -Always my answer when they want to ship me to a desert island with only one book. Jerks.
-For Chef Ramsey, cuz I gotta laugh sometimes.-For my role-playing group, dwindling as it is. Always open to new ideas and willing to focus on characterization rather than hoarding goods. To you I dedicated an upcoming series of Gamer Profiles.-For Carolynn's musical suggestions. Always appreciated and always on my playlist for a while.-For Booster Gold. I can't believe I'm actually excited about a monthly comic book rag again.-For Michael Chabon's Adventures of Kavalier & Clay. When I finish that book, there's gonna be a big empty hole in my soul.And thanks to everyone who visits here, or has put this blog in their sidebar, or are in my own sidebar. I read you every day.
And he comes up with...
At this point in the experiment, artists aren't asked to work on the concept per se, so it's really just a costume change, but this Daredevil probably trades more on fear than fists. Hell's Kitchen really does become a sort of hell, and I wonder how much pitchforking the comics code would really have allowed (send Hiro to stop Wertham from writing Seduction of the Innocent immediately!).
