GALLACON 2012

Gallacon 2012

A Gallatin Comic Convention

An event of 2012

Gallacon 2012

·         Gallacon was notably the first comic event of NYU.

·         As a Comic Book League member, I was the only one there

·         The three guest speakers were Daniel Ketchum (an editor of Marvel) Amy Reeder, Heidi MacDonald, and Bon Alimagno.

·         Daniel Ketchum talked of the gay marriage of Northstar and Kyle in the X-Men comics and how comics are commonly used for a metaphor for real world events.

·         Based on Daniel Ketchum, we are at least guaranteed that the marriage will NOT end with the two selling their marriage to the devil to save the life of a loved one (THANK GOD)

·         Amy Reeder and Heidi MacDonald talked of women in comic books and how there was always women in the media but they were commonly misrepresented until recently.

·         Apparently Mrs. MacDonald was put off by Power Girl’s breasts originally.

·         The gallery exhibits showed art from the Comic Book League and other artists.

·         The CBL comic issues shown were like in a format similar to a comic stack.

·         The other arts were of some random anime sketches and a more defined layout on a canvas

·         Notably Mr. Alimagno had his speech cut short due to the time the other speakers spent on their speeches

·         Based on Mr. Alimagno, specialty comic stores and even DC and Marvel Comics would more likely be in jeopardy once someone finds a working online comic format similar to iTunes and Amazon.

·         Being from the San Francisco Bay Area and having countless bookstores close in my area, this view is noted

·         In a panel from later on, an editor prefers to have sketches and layouts in photocopies and digital.

·         They prefer to have a cover page layout, a dialogue layout and an action layout of pages for reference in what people do.

·         The odds of making it big in the industry are notably limited so they encourage going to any means of distribution, being it smaller publishers or online comics read for free.

·         Writers are noted to build a portfolio by anthology writing books and collaborator works.

·         The job of editors is notably lacking in detail.

·         There were no cosplayers in the event.

·         Most of the attending were older persons.

·         Daniel Ketchum represented the LGBT community in his speech, saying that different spectrums of sexuality exists so sometimes gay characters are equally critiqued for not being ‘gay enough’ or ‘way to flamboyant.’

REVIEW: Locke & Key

Locke & Key: Welcome to LoveCraft

By Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez

First published in 2008

Locke & Key: Welcome to LoveCraft

·         The book notably starts with the death of the father of the Locke family, a key figure who was implied to have had his own mystery adventures back in the day in the series

·         The girl in the well Echo (later to be revealed NOT to be Echo), reminds me much of Sadako from the Ring series.

·         The tale also notably starts with the rape of the mother, which has strained her relationship with her kids.

·         The tale is notably macabre showing the horror of the father’s astral form and the souls of the Locke children having fallen to a ‘dead’ state after going to astral form.

·         Though Echo is notably malevolent, she does keep her promises as in the end she does save the Locke family as promised to Bode and made the murderer Sam powerful by turning him into a ghost

·         Echo also haunts a random lady in the end, implying there is much more to the story than meets the eye

·         The young teenagers who committed the murder and rape are given close to no back story besides passing dialogue. The raping kid only mentions special education and sexual attraction to the mother, but this isn’t usually enough to commit such a crime. Also, Sam somehow manages to kill most everyone he sees, giving a sense of overpowering murder to a seemingly mortal killer in the series.

·         The series also depicts minors being brutally beaten and almost molested/killed on panel, a notably risky narrative style.

·         The keys of magic, so fittingly key to the narrative to the story, are only seen really at the end of the book.

·         The series is set originally in the San Francisco Bay Area, with the characters moving to Massachusetts after the murder.

·         The authority figures in the series are notably incompetent, again requiring the suspension of disbelief that a teenager could overpower a police station worth of police officers to even escape to begin with and had the resources to go cross country to hunt down a family who was more than likely being protected by even more officers. In addition, if Sam had left a string of murders in his wake then the authorities could have predicted a pattern of his moves and acted to redirect the manhunt according to a likely path for him to follow.

·         Fittingly the location in Massachusetts the place is located in is called “Lovecraft,” as the author is the son of another author inspired by  H.P Lovecraft

·         On page 39 there is a provided comic of Bode’s view of the events, which is done with a child’s style of art and narration.

Bibliography

Hill, Joe, and Gabriel Rodriguez. Locke & Key: Welcome to Lovecraft. San Diego, CA: IDW, 2008. Print.

REVIEW: The Crow Film

The Crow (Film)

Directed by Alex Proyas

First published in 1994

The Crow (film)

·         The film notably starts with the death of Eric and Shelley and their relations with a girl named Sarah.

·         The film adds the back story of the four murderers being friends of Eric at one point in their life and that Shelley was a political person who they raped and killed as an example.

·         They added the importance of the police officer in the film to be a sidekick of sorts to the Crow.

·         The crow was explained to be the source of Eric’s revival, as opposed to any other supernatural means.

·         The death was at the house they lived in rather than a random highway.

·         They added more human qualities to the Crow like his humane treatment to Sarah’s prostitute mother and the friendships he kept with the officer and Sarah.

·         Gabriel the cat was already their pet in the film as opposed to being taken in midway as with the comic.

·         They added a drug lord and his Asian sister as the final bosses to the film that the four murderers were working under. In fact, the Asian sister was the one who pointed out the Crow’s weakness.

·         The humane killing of Funny Boy was removed in favor for more vengeful killings, as the Crow doesn’t take a macabre mercy for him in accepting that he killed Shelley in cold blood.

·         The costume of the Crow has a origin story too as Eric takes his boots from the dumpster, his clothes being what he used to wear in his band and his mask painting being what he used to have fun with Shelley with.

·         This is notably Brandon Lee’s last major performance before he died.

·         The Crow gains the ability to read people’s experiences and transfers them in the film, whereas he was just immortal in the comic.

·         Characters that were originally just killed by the Crow in the comic, as with the corrupt store owner, were killed by the drug lord in the adaptation.

·         The film ends in a more happy reunion of the spirits of Eric and Shelley, as opposed to the bleak and ambiguous ending of the comic.

·         The poetry of the comic was left out of the film.

·         Eric was notably sane in the film as opposed to the more mentally detached state he was in with the comic.

·         The prostitute mother and her daughter reunite happily in the film as opposed to the comic.

·         Eric notably plays a lot of music in this adaptation, which had him dancing instead with the comic.

Bibliography

The Crow. Dir. Alex Proyas. Perf. Brandon Lee. Dimension Films, 1994. DVD.

REVIEW: The Crow

The Crow (Comic)

By J. O’Barr

First published in 2002

The Crow (comic)

·         The work notably comes with both comics and poetry, with the poetry being part of the narrative about loss.

·         The comic is illustrated in two styles, with it being jagged and having heavier lines with the violent post-death scenes of the Crow’s loved one and the soft almost acrylic look of the comic in the pre-death scenes.

·         The nature of the Crow’s powers is not made clear in the story, but it does add to the supernatural element of the piece and the surreal Horror genre feel of the tale.

·         The Crow’s mercy of Funny Boy is notable in that he gives Funny Boy a fast and painless death of illegal drug overdose due to Funny Boy’s recognition of his own sins. While the other rapist and murderers tried to make their lives more positive after the death of Shelley, Funny Boy morbidly accepted his death and so the Crow gave him the least gruesome death.

·         The Crow notably has mercy to the innocent in that a police officer, a prostitute, a little girl and other noted side characters not the rapists. He even wishes them a good life as with the case of the officer and the little girl.

·         There is a noted “women in refrigerator” story narrative with the rape, death and mutilation of the Crow’s beloved Shelley was there only for progress the story of the narrative.

·         The flashbacks with Shelley are notably in mostly white as opposed to the dark pages this book is mostly made of.

·         Cats are common in the series as a herald to the Crow being in the area, much like the magic crow which brought the man the Crow back to life.

·         The villains have no depth to them other than that they were rapist and murderers. This seems sociopathic almost in the depiction as the lack of redeeming qualities make the antagonists seem more beast rather than murdering people. Granted this may be what the author was aiming for in depicting people doing dark deeds.

·         The actual death of T Bird and the Crow are notably absent, the former possibly being tortured to an extent that even this series can’t convey. The latter possibly could mean that he finally could die with the murderers dead or that he continued in existence as a vengeful antihero.

·         The one time The Crow smiled he found disturbing given his new nature. This shows his more human side which he shuns now is somehow still there.

·         It is never explained how Shelley knew how her precious Eric (The Crow) saw everything as a magic crow in her rape and death.

·         It is never explained how the commissioner knew of the Crow and accepted his revenge.

·         The irony of constantly seeing Shelley saying she’s safe with Eric or Eric notably seeing the murderers as not a threat before becoming the Crow is used to an almost stupid amount.

Bibliography

O'Barr, J. The Crow. Northampton, MA: Kitchen Sink, 1994. Print.

REVIEW: Death Note Film

Death Note (film)

Directed by Shūsuke Kaneko

Released in Japan 2006

Death Note (film)

·         The film notably takes more detail in the reactions of the public compared to the manga, as the film opens with the death of criminals and commentary by the populous on what they think of Kira. There is even a fan page on the internet to Kira to which a noted number of forum messengers encourage Kira to continue killing criminals.

·         The film notably abridges the pacing of the manga, as the detail to which Light took precautions in the burning of the Death Note is notably missing.

·         Light notably acts smug and not content with the justice system, letting Shiori, Light’s girlfriend, know the detail to which he hates the current Japanese justice system. This notably makes him more of a suspect to being Kira should common sense be applied. In fact, Light supports Kira. This questionably would have made him a prime suspect.

·         L uses a Mac book Pro in his introduction.

·         Ryuk looks too much like a CGI effect in the film, contrasting with the live action.

·         They added a scene where Light lost his faith in the justice system before picking up the Death Note. They also excluded him saving a girl from a punk by getting the punk hit by a bus.

·         They switched some of the ethnicities in the film, as with the fake L being a Caucasian person rather than a Japanese person.

·         It is noted that things float in the air when Ryuk is holding them from the real world, as normal people can’t see Death gods.

·         The hair colors of the characters are noted to be natural brown black in the live action, as opposed to the distinctive blond or off setting colors key to manga.

·         Ryuk notably acts like a trickster in the film, opposed to his more collective introduction to the series in the manga.

·         The voice actors of the dubbed film are from the animated dub.

·         The FBI agent was targeting Light specifically in his introduction as opposed to being there to search for Kira. This deviates from the manga and suggests that Light was acting suspiciously to begin with.

·         Ryuk is the only seen Death God in the film, as the dimension to where the Death gods come from isn’t included in the film.

·         Ryuk didn’t tell light that he would write his name down as the last victim of the Death Note as with the manga, making him more of an ambiguous character.

·         Light doesn’t monologue/ tell Ryuk he’d prefer not to kill his father like in the manga, suggesting this version of Light is not above patricide in order to keep his sense of justice.

·         They take an entire page worth of Death Note for each death, which is not only lacking efficiency but also inaccurate to how Light killed people in the manga.

Bibliography

Death Note. Dir. Shūsuke Kaneko. Viz Pictures, 2006. Film.

REVIEW: Death Note

Death Note

By Ohba Tsugumi and Asami Yuuko

 Published 2003-2006

Death Note

·         Light is a noted individual of good grades and social standings, which may indicate his use of the Death Note may indicate his disdain of criminals and humanity as being beneath him.

·         Light as the main character is like having Moriarty in Sherlock Holmes as the protagonist, which is fitting given that L is the Holmes character throughout the series

·         The nature of the Death Gods indicate that killing people with the Death Note is boring under normal circumstances, though in the hands of a person it becomes more violent than need be

·         The realistic style of the humans next to the surreal demon style of the death gods contrasts well though it makes the whole series feel surreal also

·         The fact that each chapter or chapter arc adds more rules to the Death Note does give noted plot expansion for the series, though this could also be interpreted as the author making up restrictions and such for the series as he goes along

·         The fact that the Death God Ryuk bothered to make the Death Note in English and Japanese subtly indicates the nature of the series’ demographics, as it was expected for Japanese audiences to pick up yet it also indicates the foreign nature of the English language to the Japanese. It also could be a bid to see if American audiences would enjoy it as well.

·         There is more noted drama in between the deaths as opposed to the constant massacre of characters, which is unusual for a Shonen Jump manga as series by Shonen Jump are known for over the top violence and the breaking of physics. This in turn binds the series of Death Note to the laws of physics despite the existence of Death gods.

·         Light’s willingness to kill his father if he becomes a threat shows his adamant look on his ideals.

·         The creation of Kira notably reduces crime, so although the acts of Light could be seen as bad they do indeed serve the greater good

·         A good noted part of the beginning was dedicated to the means to which Light was to protect his identity as Kira, such as the possible burning of his Notebook should the house be raided

·         Light notably doesn’t make the deal with the Ryuk, or the devil, himself to gain the power to look at people’s names and lifetimes. This is a good contrast to Faust as though Light has the powers of a devil with him he prefers control for himself as opposed to gaining knowledge or powers.

·         The series is notably more of a drama as opposed to a conflict comic, a rare thing in Shonen manga.

·         Light notably does experiments with the Death Note to see if people will die in specific ways if he writes with a specific instruction in mind

·         Light’s use of the Death note makes him notably like the Spectre in DC comics.

·         Given the nature of his attacks, Light becomes more like the criminals in ruthlessness as the series progresses

Bibliography

Ōba, Tsugumi, Takeshi Obata, and Pookie Rolf. Death Note. San Francisco: Viz Media, 2005. Print.

REVIEW: Dredd 3D

Dredd 3D

Directed by Pete Travis

Released 2012

Dredd 3D

·         The film notably has only Judge Dredd and Judge Anderson as characters from the comic book series. The other noted characters Ma-Ma and Kay were drug dealers made specifically for the film.

·         The setting is that of a modern metropolis on the East Coast with giant new structures for people to live in, as opposed to the forced CGI future of the previous Judge Dredd film.

·         Dredd notably doesn’t proclaim his own title as “The Law” every scene like the previous movie.

·         Anderson’s background as a mutant with psychic powers is not delved into much in the movie.

·         The film notably ends without a romance between the dual protagonists, a noted deviation from other cinema

·         The amount of blood of violence and depictions of mutilation was notably high in the movie; given the R rating it was surprising that a comic book movie would be allowed such treatment.

·         People seem notably used to violence all the time in the Dredd universe as people are dying in a mall and literally thirty minutes later it is allowed to open again despite the traumatic shootings and killings

·         The use of 3D for the narcotic scenes was well used, as 3D was used with hallucinations in a way that emphasized the surreal nature of the drugs compared to the gritty nature of the Dredd universe. The drugs also made the base colors of the movie much lighter as opposed to the gray dark scheme of the metropolis.

·         Dredd notably doesn’t take his helmet off in the film, a gripe people had with the other film. He also can run out of bullets with his gun and can be wounded.

·         The common people are notably mistrusting of Judges as much as criminals, as with the example of the Medical facility’s ward not helping Dredd out.

·         (Spoilers) Apparently no one knows the DNA rule of the Judge guns as one guy gets the consequence of trying to use a Judge gun.

·         (Spoilers) Anderson’s PSI powers are quite in flux in the film as they range from God-tier psychic memory drains to not being able to sense people who are right next to you

·         (Spoilers) Ma-Ma treats her gang like lambs to the laughter yet notably doesn’t allow Anderson to be mutilated or violated save for execution.

·         (Spoilers) The Judges seem to not be able to tell of others of their kind go bad as corrupted Judges do appear in this film.

·         (Spoilers) The execution of a gang member and Anderson’s meeting with the member’s wife seemed a bit forced to bring out drama to make Anderson question being a Judge.

·         Apparently no one tried to make an inspection of the Peach Tree living complex as Judge Dredd going there made a big deal of things

Bibliography

Dredd 3D. Dir. Pete Travis. Lionsgate, 2012. Film.