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Free Comic Book Day 2007

Post author:Guy LeCharles Gonzalez
Post published:January 25, 2007
Post category:Media Pop Culture
Post comments:0 Comments

This year's Free Comic Book Day is on Saturday, May 5 -- the same weekend Spider-Man 3 opens -- and the list of comics that will be available is pretty impressive. My initial thoughts on some of them:Archie Comics (Gold): Archie Comics Little Archie 2007 Archie Comics (Silver): Sonic the Hedgehog 2007My son loves Sonic, so I'll definitely grab one for him. I'm guessing Little Archies is something new?DC Comics (Gold): Legion of Super Heroes in the 31st Century 2007 DC Comics (Silver): Justice League of America # 0 2007Smart selection on the Gold title as all-ages accessibility should be…

On The Shelves: 1/24/07

Post author:Guy LeCharles Gonzalez
Post published:January 23, 2007
Post category:Media Personal Pop Culture
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Reading is fundamental. Don't waste your time reading bad comics out of habit! My weekly look at select comic books being released Wednesday, 1/24/07. The full shipping list, as always, is available at ComicList. [NOTE: Not all of these titles will actually arrive in all stores. If your LCBS offers a pre-ordering service, be sure to take advantage of it. If not, find another one; or try Khepri.com or MidtownComics.com] PICK OF THE WEEKCover image to come... Fallen Angel #12ARCHAIA STUDIOS PRESS Mouse Guard #6 (Of 6), $3.50 Good news: Mouse Guard is a great read, and one of my…

Amazon POD Update: Raves for Sale!

Post author:Guy LeCharles Gonzalez
Post published:January 22, 2007
Post category:Media Personal Pop Culture Reviews
Post comments:0 Comments

Last month I posted a brief item about Amazon's Print-on-Demand services, offered in partnership with BookSurge, suggesting it might be "worthy of consideration for potential self- and micro-publishers." On Friday, Slate posted an interesting article entitled "Raves For Sale" that reveals one of the options available to its customers is "a personally crafted review written by 'New York Times bestselling author, Ellen Tanner Marsh.'"Amazon.com's recently acquired print-on-demand division, BookSurge.com, offers several tiers of publishing programs with menus of services starting at $99.The most interesting add-on BookSurge offers is, for $399, a personally crafted review written by "New York Times bestselling…

Stephanie Fierman: Villain, Victim…or Scapegoat?

Post author:Guy LeCharles Gonzalez
Post published:January 17, 2007
Post category:Media Personal
Post comments:2 Comments

According to Rich Johnston, as reported in yesterday's Lying in the Gutters, DC's outgoing SVP of Sales & Marketing, Stephanie Fierman, "is still on contract at DC for another year and will work on special projects with DC Publisher and President Paul Levitz while she looks for a new position within Time Warner." If true, it suggests that what's happening is very likely personality-driven and not based solely on her performance, because contract or not, if it were the latter, they'd simply fire her outright and offer her a severance package. My wild guess is that her primary "special project"…

On The Shelves: 1/17/07

Post author:Guy LeCharles Gonzalez
Post published:January 16, 2007
Post category:Media Pop Culture Reviews
Post comments:0 Comments

Reading is fundamental. Don't waste your time reading bad comics out of habit! My weekly look at select comic books being released Wednesday, 1/17/07. The full shipping list, as always, is available at ComicList. [NOTE: Not all of these titles will actually arrive in all stores. If your LCBS offers a pre-ordering service, be sure to take advantage of it. If not, find another one; or try Khepri.com or MidtownComics.com] PICK OF THE WEEK Batman: Year One HundredAMAZE INK (SLAVE LABOR GRAPHICS) Tron #3, $3.50 As a casual fan who was intrigued by the first issue -- which came out…

Review: The Guardian Line

Post author:Guy LeCharles Gonzalez
Post published:January 14, 2007
Post category:Media Reviews
Post comments:5 Comments

Joe and Max #1
By Jason Medley, Claude St. Aubin & Chris Chuckery

Genesis 5 #1
By Lovern Kindzierski, Claude St. Aubin & Chris Chuckery

Code #1
By Mike Baron, Lovern Kindzierski, Howard Simpson, Dave Ross & Chris Chuckery
(All published by The Guardian line, December 2006)

Any sincere attempt by a comics publisher to reach new audiences (particularly from an all-ages perspective) is deserving of high praise, and Urban Ministries is doing exactly that with The Guardian Line, targeting the Christian demographic for whom the adventures of the superheroes they grew up with are neither representative of their beliefs nor appropriate for their children.

Of course, while good intentions are important, the final judgement should be based on the most basic of criteria: are they any good? The answer to that question is…they could be.

(more…)

Fierman Out at DC Comics

Post author:Guy LeCharles Gonzalez
Post published:January 12, 2007
Post category:Media Reviews
Post comments:4 Comments

NOTE: I've rearranged the updates, so if you're checking this for the first time, scroll all the way down for the original post. ***** UPDATE (1/16 @ 12:49m): The Beat's latest update stirs the pot a bit as former and current DC staffers debate the story. It's mostly he said/she said stuff involving Vinnie Costa's take on working for Fierman, but there's an interesting bit about Nellie Kurtzman's departure from a current staffer, Joe Castleman [not sure if that's his real name or not], that possibly sheds some light on things: "...everyone in marketing worked with Nelie Kurtzman. Really nice…