Good news, everyone!

Dateline San Diego Comic-Con

Futurama is back, and now we know in what form. The show will return on November 27th as a full-length high-def film sold on DVD. It will be followed by three additional films, and each film will be divided into four episodes each to be aired on Comedy Central. So, that's 4 DVD movies or 16 new episodes depending on how you look at it.

The panel featured the shows creator Matt Groening and the vocal cast. In the most highly entertaining Comic-Con panel to date, the cast read aloud a promotional comic book created for the convention. The experience was on the meta- side. The cast read the comic, which was projected on the screen. The comic satirized the Fox network's decision to cancel Futurama and the ultimate triumph of the nerds in the room whose mighty power brought it back. In the comic, the characters all go to a massive Delivery Services-Con in Space Diego.

The remainder of the panel featured the voice cast being generally endearing. John DiMaggio, the voice of Bender, explained that his voice is a combination of Slim Pickins in Blazing Saddles, a drunk and a college creation of his called Charlie, the sausage king. Billy West, the voice of Fry and half a dozen other characters on the show, shared his love of Yiddish and vaudeville performers and his friendship with Phil Hartman -- all of which influence his characters' voices.

Welcome back, Futurama.

C'est Fantastique!

Sleek and stylish animation, endearing plot, beautiful settings and food so pretty it made me crave French food for a week! Defiantly one of the best animated movies of all time. The voices where spot on and the accent accurate enough to make you feel that you where on the continent, it was also a treat to see two Pixar employees in the final voice cast, with art department veteran Lou Romano as Linguini, and animator Peter Sohn giving life to the instantly lovable Emile. The musical score was spot on setting the mood, classic French styling with a jazz twist, and some of the best squeeze box playing I have heard in a while. As an added treat, the inclusion of a lovely song "Le Festin" by one of Frances preeminent female vocalist, Camille, just adds to the atmosphere. Rich Parisian french and clever lyrics equating love to a sumptuous feast makes for a perfect love theme for the two human characters, and also for Remy's love of the lifestyle he has found in Paris. While not the visual knock out that "Cars" was at first glance, "Ratatouille" shows considerable visual shops on multiple viewings; subsurface scattering made me want to reach out and stroke Remy's little velvet ears, and the work on the rats fur was beautiful, with each rat having groomed it differently helping to show and not tell character. This also marks the first time I have ever seen curly hair (Linguini) on a 3D character. Make certain to watch the credits to catch Pixar's slightly snarky mention of animation over reliance on mo-cap
"Our Quality Assurance Guarantee:
100% Genuine Animation!
No motion capture or any other
performance shortcuts were used in
the production of this film."

A Whole Pile of Comics

Today I was reading my comic books before I came to school; this in itself is not an odd thing, although that which transpired is rather odd behavior for me. I decided to count them. Every trade paperback in the collection that I have in Kelowna with me, not the collections or graphic novels, just the trades.

Allow us start, here is my comic box, let's take a look inside. Pleases ignore the junk in the background.

Hmmm this is not too terribly impressive, wonder what they look like out of the box. Again please ignore the empty blizzard cup and other miscellany.


Whoa! That’s a little more on the big side! Note the pop can for comparison. (Yup, I drink diet cola, wanna fight about it?) I wonder what they would look like all spread out?


Holy smokes! They reach across the living room of my apartment with need for a second row! Granted it's a small apartment but still... It's kind of awe inspiring in a sad nerdy pasty faced way.


As I re-filed them I decide to see just how many I had, it came to 118. Not terribly many but then again this is only the trade paper backs that I brought with me, it's about 30% of my total collection when you take all of my other junk into consideration. I must have about 25 pounds of Casper and Richie Rich digests, plus a pile of collections, graphic novels and other miscellany or unfiled trades. This made me realize two things; one that it's pretty pathetic that the only reason I tidied my apartment up today was to spread comics on the floor, and two I love comics, not just as something to look at behind Mylar, but as a form of entertainment.

I also noticed that many of my comics are less than pristine. Even though I take care to read them carefully and keep them in Mylar, they still show sings of wear. I read my comics, unlike many collectors who seal them away for protection; I often take them out for a read. I believe that that is what there creators intended them for. They wanted there works to be read and enjoyed over and over again. So tonight I ask you my loving audience, all two of you, go and read a comic book! Unwrap it and read it, wear rubber gloves if you want, but please, enjoy comics the way that there creators intended them to be. Read loved and read again.

Doomed?

Am I or aren't I?