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 I AM IRON-BABY  (video above)

The World's Most Literal Super-Hero

McAvoy to play Prof. X?

Tron-themed hoodies

Ghostbusters B.C.

I think we're still about 30 years away from the first "Chris Pine as Kirk" tattoo.

RIP: Gary Coleman

1968-2010

(Note: I actually saw Jimmy the Kid in the theater.)

Random Geekery (Or "A Slow News Day")

After a second viewing of Iron-Man 2 last night, I picked up a Diet Dr. Pepper that had an IM2-related promotion (on a related note, did any of you think you'd ever see Stan Fucking Lee on TV plugging a soda?) The bottle had a code that could be entered online to win something or other (I wasn't really paying attention to the prize list) and ultimately received a free month subscription to Marvel's online comic service.

I was sent an e-mail about the transaction and was encouraged to print it. The result looked like a response to an Area 51-related FOI request. See below.

Also this week I received some marketing materials for G33K4L1F3: business cards, fridge magnets and postcards featuring imagery that might look a little familiar. I've got more than enough to go around, so if you want to receive some stuff in the mail just let me know.

Jaws 2 Posterpalooza

Rationally, I understand that Jaws 2 is not a very good movie. Not only does it have the depth of a Friday the 13th sequel, but the entire premise — that of a second killer shark terrorizing the same beach community from the first film — is amazingly ridiculous. But nostalgia (not to mention my love of '70s excess) makes sure there's always room in my heart for this bizarre bit of trash.

Below is an assortment of posters and other marketing materials used to promote Jaws 2 around the world.

News Design: Star Wars

This is a pretty impressive bit of work. I suspect there's a second half to this art that ran on the facing page, but I don't appear to have it on my hard drive.

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Star Wars pancake molds

Disney joins Kirby Vs. Marvel rumble

Who the hell is playing Spider-Man?

No more Joker for Mark Hamill

Michael Keaton plugs Batman on Letterman (video below)

R.I.P.: Geek Orthodox

It appears those Valkyries of the Blogpsohere have claimed another victim. Geek Orthodox will soon enter Valhalla, where it will join the likes of Scar Stuff and Twilight Zone-Ride Your Pony. You can read about Geek Orthodox's pending demise here.

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May 25 is Geek Pride Day

A brief history of Batman-themed pornography (NSFW)

No jail time for man arrested in Captain America costume

Wolfman/Perez Teen Titans graphic novel FINALLY gets release date!

Mr. and Mrs. Vader (below)

The Batman Chronicles: Vol. 1

The Batman Chronicles seems so obvious an idea that I’m amazed DC didn't think of it earlier: reprint every Batman story in order of appearance, merging Detective Comics, World’s Finest and the solo Batman title into a single series of trade paperbacks.

The first volume collects a brief but special time in Batman’s history: his days as a dangerous (and clearly insane) vigilante. There are few superhero fetishes present in the stories during Batman’s real “Year One.” He keeps his bat costume in a steamer trunk, drives around is a red sports car and kills without a second thought (or even a first thought, for that.)

This is the Batman that inspired Frank Miller’s tales, the violent vigilante more interested in stomping criminals than stomping crime. When the villains of these early tales land in jail it’s usually by mistake. This version of Batman would just as soon break your neck than turn you over to the cops.

The artwork in this first volume carries a lot of weight, with each panel having to convey more than modern readers might be used to. In The Dirigible of Doom, a blimp lays waste to the as-yet unnamed Gotham City, toppling skyscrapers with some sort of energy cannon. It’s one of the most powerful images of these early stories and Bruce Wayne is even shown — for all of a single panel — helping to pull survivors out of the wreckage. These old stories cover a lot of ground in just a little space, so a little more care and attention is needed to fully savor them.

The Dirigible of Doom also illustrates some of the problems with these old stories. As impressive as the threat is, the badguys are sometimes a little goofy. The man revealed to be behind the killer blimp is some dumpy guy with a “Napoleon Complex” (having him dress as Napoleon is an incredibly literal — if stupid — way of interpreting that particular mental disorder.)

These early stories also tend to rush their endings, as though Bill Finger or Bob Kane realized late in the day that they’re running out of room. It’s common to see a story rocket along, only to tie up as many threads as quickly as possible in the final page.

Some of the earlier villains still interest me, though. Dr. Death, the Mad Monk and Hugo Strange are as creepy as ever, though few writers have ever been able to bring these characters part-and-parcel into modern settings. These characters would be right at home in Sandman Mystery Theater and are strangely perverse, sadistic figures.

Batman is also shown frequently carrying a gun in these Pre-Robin stories, though he rarely uses it. Some of this “gun art” looks to be cribbed from art in The Shadow pulps. Given Bob Kane’s contributions to history’s “swipe files” this seems pretty likely. In fact, there is little to no difference between Bruce Wayne and Lamont Cranston in Batman’s early days. His villains eventually set the two characters apart.

The first volume also features the brilliant first appearances of Robin and The Joker, as well as Catwoman’s barely recognizable debut. Those have been written about at length elsewhere so I won’t drone on about those famous stories too much. They still hold up tremendously well, though. And it’s impressive how much The Joker’s first two appearances contributed to his interpretation in The Dark Knight film.

News Design: Spider-Man

When you've got an image to work with that's this great, it's best not to futz with it. My hat's off to the designer, who was astute enough to recognize they didn't need to excessively Photoshop the art to make a bold statement.

More from Warrior Dash!

I'd like to say something to the viking girl in the middle, but think I'll let Geggy Tah handle that for me.

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Oops, indeed.

Marvel Thor Vs. Norse Thor.

I'm pretty sure he didn't arrive to Warrior Dash wearing this Swamp Thing costume ...

There's a rip in the fabric of the universe! Heroes are bleeding in from other realities ... there's a barbarian in my peanut butter! (If you get that reference seek immediate counseling.)

I think the organizer of Warrior Dash is a pyromaniac. Which is OK. I might watch the Olympics if more athletes were in danger of third-degree burns.

You can see more photos and video at my earlier post here.

Random Iron-Man pics

You know, sometimes I take you folks for granted. While searching through some photos on my phone, I came across a few silly images I took on the opening night of Iron-Man 2.

Opening night, bitches!

 Iron-Man searches the bag of Jelly Bellies in search of the martini flavored ones.

The Demon in the Bottle!

This pic was taken Sunday morning in South Carolina ... the photo quality is crap, but the license plate reads STARK 3. Which means there's a STARK 1 and STARK 2 driving around somewhere in S.C.

Video: Spider Interviews George Romero

From: Rockets and Robots

He-Man Shakes His Ass at Warrior Dash

Yep. That's a video of He-Man dancing to Wooly Bully.

I spent most of the weekend in Mountain City, Ga., "participating" in the southeast Warrior Dash event. And by "participating" I mean I spent most of my time sitting on my ass, drinking heavily or some combination of the two. All that running around is for crazy folk. Below are a few photos and videos I took at the event.

Warrior Dash brought out creative-minded weirdos with athletic tendencies. Saturday afternoon, after thousands of men and women took part in a 3+ mile obstacle course, a costume contest was held that included the Hulk, Thor, Quail Man, Pac-Man (as well as Inky, Pinky, Blinky and Clyde,) Jesus and ... a few concepts best not explained. Here's a video of the event ... it runs about 10 minutes:

Spoiler Alert: The winner was Jesus. The moral of this story? Don't fuck with the Jesus.

And the moral of this story? Don't turn your back on Thor.

Your humble editor, flanked by the Valkyries of the Blogosphere. Most bloggers only see them moments before Blogspot pulls the plug on their site for violating the terms of service.

Cute, not to mention a little scary.

Consider this photo both raped and pillaged.

The Warrior Dash finish line. No shit.

The End.