Messages

1

Film & TV / Re: Last movie watched...

« on: 20 May, 2022, 10:17:23 AM »

Corralling any genre (but let's pick on Marvel, because it's on topic) behind "not for you, this" signage surely only plays into Scorsese's notion that they're "not cinema".

I agree with that. But, when I hear the same "MCU is boring/derivative/cynical commercial shite" points being made about every Marvel movie, I tune out and just want the debate to move on. I completely understand why some people don't like them (I don't like lots of the MCU films), but maybe we should just give it a rest.

2

Film & TV / Re: Last movie watched...

« on: 19 May, 2022, 10:14:10 AM »

I enjoyed Dr Strange, but then I like Sam Raimi, Marvel and Marvel movies (in that order). If you don't like those, then I'm not sure why you'd stump up your hard earned cash for a ticket.

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General / Re: Forum’s Favourite Thrill - Leviathan vs. Tyranny Rex Round 3 Heat 13

« on: 18 May, 2022, 02:55:15 PM »

Leviathan

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General / Re: Forum’s Favourite Thrill - Button Man vs. Zenith Round 3 Heat 14

« on: 18 May, 2022, 01:45:18 PM »

Ooof. Tough draw. Zenith.

5

Books & Comics / Re: Phoenix comic

« on: 17 May, 2022, 01:28:08 PM »

We watched the first two of those Corpse Talk shorts last night (Cleopatra and Mozart). They went down very well! Good quality stuff.

6

Off Topic / Re: RIPs

« on: 17 May, 2022, 01:26:17 PM »

Ricky Gardiner, guitarist on Bowie's Low album and Iggy Pop's Lust for Life.
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/may/17/ricky-gardiner-guitarist-for-david-bowie-and-iggy-pop-dies-aged-73

That's an incredible couple of years he had: Sound+Vision, The Passenger, Lust for Life, Speed of Life and many others.

7

Books & Comics / Re: New Comic Book Day Megathread

« on: 16 May, 2022, 11:17:39 AM »

Dogs of London (Milligan, Artecida, Bianconi, Steen). On the surface this is a gangster tale set in 60s London and Soho (which reminds me I still need to see that Edgar Wright film) with hints of the Krays. This is Peter Milligan, though, so there are suggestions of experiments, revived corpses and other  strange goings on. I haven't come across Artecida before, but their work is impressive. If I have a criticism, its that it is very static. I think they come from outside comics, so maybe that betrays a slight lack of familiarity with the medium.

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Books & Comics / Re: Phoenix comic

« on: 16 May, 2022, 11:10:17 AM »

Great news. My daughter loves their Lost Tales book and, in fact, was reading it this morning when she should have been getting ready for school.

9

Film & TV / Re: Current TV Boxset Addiction

« on: 13 May, 2022, 03:39:42 PM »

Has there been a better comic creation than George Costanza?

Frank Costanza.

10

Books & Comics / Re: Free Comic Book Day 2022

« on: 09 May, 2022, 01:29:37 PM »

Thanks for that. I've just ordered in from A Place in Space, along with the Spider-Man/Venom book which, annoyingly, seems to be the start of the next Spider-Man run.

11

Film & TV / Re: Last movie watched...

« on: 06 May, 2022, 11:28:28 AM »

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. I meant to see The Northman, but we turned up at the wrong cinema. Oops. This was on, though, so we saw it instead.

This was a load of fun. It's very recognisably a Sam Raimi film, and he plays up the horror aspects. Bruce Campbell's cameo even references Evil Dead 2.

There are the usual bits of MCU lore and "surprise" characters, which all add to it.

Well worth an evening out. But I still need to see The Northman.

12

Books & Comics / Re: New Comic Book Day Megathread

« on: 05 May, 2022, 02:59:26 PM »

Based on this I ordered Rogues and I'm glad I did, its a fun read... until the end when we are left to remember that while this was all been fun hi-jinks and played for laughs these folks are pretty terrible people. Art is just lush. The fact that the main heist is due to be in Gorilla City and we'll (I assume) get Grood soon as well.

So over all a bit of a triumph so thank you Calhab for the heads up.

One question though is Angel really going out with Detective Chimp?!?

Issue 2 of Rogues is pretty good- not quite hitting the high notes of 1, but some interesting character development.

13

Film & TV / Re: Last movie watched...

« on: 03 May, 2022, 02:02:16 PM »

A weekend trip to Edinburgh meant I got to return to the wonderful Filmhouse and catch their screening of Once Upon a Time in the West, part of their Morricone season. I'd only seen this on a tv before, and this was an entirely different experience. The pacing is slow, almost to the point of parody, but it is absolutely riveting throughout. The soundtrack, and the matching of the visuals to it (it was made before the film) might well be unmatched in cinema.

Anyway. Well worth seeing if it appears on a big screen near you.

14

News / Re: Help Sandra Ezquerra get this piece of artwork back

« on: 28 April, 2022, 09:06:47 AM »

Relying on comic art buyers being nice people? Oh dear. Minefield.

Its telling that I immediately could think of a couple of names about who the likely "owner" is who is unwilling to return the art.

Original comic art seems to attract some absolute bellends (and some some good people who are only interested in the art, of course).

15

Books & Comics / Re: Whats everyone reading?

« on: 22 April, 2022, 09:30:06 AM »

The Earthsea Quartet by Ursula Le Guin. I'm not sure why it took me so long to get round to this. Possibly because I'd bought the collected edition and the prospect of a 600+ page book is often not very appealing? Anyway, I should have read it years ago. It's easy to see the influences of the first book, A Wizard of Earthsea, on lots of subsequent fantasy. None seem to capture the same sense of a rich and strange world in the same way. The Tombs of Atuan, the second novel, takes a far more character driven approach and is all the better for it. The Farthest Shore is, on the face of it, a conventional quest story but manages to subvert it in interesting ways. Tehanu returns to the characters and shows them in a new light, in a changed world.

All great stuff. I think I'll reread this in a couple of years or so.