PLANET GRIFFIN

Revolution In Ruin? Doubt It...

2011-02-06T21:06:00.001-05:00

The last time this country saw a true revolution, it involved a united front facing the overwhelming odds of a hierarchy whose reign, though already well established, sought to continue its domination over those who broke away to seek new worlds of their own.

Sound familiar?

Superbowl Sunday is the flavor of the day as PLANET GRIFFIN returns to orbit to comment on other clashes that have taken place over the last few weeks... I speak of the supremely intriguing; albeit lukewarm, commentary of the ' Indy Comic Revolution'--- from Eric Powell's infamous Youtube video (revealing a cowled superhero straddling one of its artist across a kitchen table) declaring the emergence of a Creator's Front, to the impassioned statements of Steve Niles, Robert Kirkman, and others, to the varied criticisms from online reviewers--- all of this chatter culminating (so far) in the removal of the Creator's Front facebook page and the bewilderment of many a fanboy as the online chatter quickly changed from 'Gotta Revolution' to 'What Happened?'

Frankly, in an industry surrounded by incredibly talented individuals, the abundance of ego's in this business are just as incredible, so revolution is putting it a bit strong... Which offers one explaination of Powell tearing down the FB site; citing 'his own personal enthusiasm' to carry him forward... Really, the mainstream wouldn't have to worry about such sides--- they have corporate sponsorship. Independent power players like Niles and Kirkman can afford to speak on such issues... In fact, in the wake of television, film, and multimedia, they can afford to do whatever they like... Sigh.

Y'know, I could continue on with this, but for those of you who took the time to read up on PLANET GRIFFIN archives, you would've already known that this blogsite foretold the situation over a year ago! Bold statement, I know, but considering that even in its dormant state, this pirate blogcast has been sitting on ALL of this information for some time, so for those of you who've followed this site, you're already ahead of the curve. This little heads-up is brought to you by The Infamous RodBuddah.

BACK TO WORK...

Brand New Day, Brand New Business

2011-01-01T17:57:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year!

That baaaad maaan of the pirate blogcast, The INFAMOUS RODBUDDAH, has re-emerged to once again become part of your complete breakfast just in time for the new year! The number of emails, text messages, and people who generally abuse me, asking when I would make the return to ranting and raving about the excesses of lamestream pop culture--- Well, here we are.

Anyways, I hope everyone's holidays have been a merry one--- my time spent at the end of the year has jumped up and down more than the Dunn and Broadstreet stock index... Christmas time was joyous until the water pipes burst in my house and my neighbor's dog attempted to treat my ass as Steve-O's stunt double while underneath the house... I thrilled to the sight of going to a bonfire where the theme of it was burning old christmas trees... Just picture the imagine: Hapless dry pines being sacrificed to the old gods of the holidays... The flaming spiral extending into the sky by an astounding 30 feet... The young man consuming champagne, oblivious to the gas can by his feet... By the fire... The stark contrast of bright yellow and white against a deep purplish night sky, followed by the sharp hues of blue, red, and white lights as they encircled the party, inquiring of the incredible fire show which threatened to consume the neighborhood....

...Ah, the Jim Morrison moment was not lost on me. But that's another story for another time.

But now, a brand new day for a brand new year, and this is merely a taste of what to expect from your brand new host. I did spill the beans in my last post concerning a new PODCAST that will emerge in 2011 and since that staement, the number of inquires surrounding that has doubled. For those uninitiated with PLANET GRIFFIN, the new mantra for 2011 is simple and direct...

"Balls. Big ones. On your coffee table." In other words: Our Business is your Business that means Business.

Till next post, stay hungry and BACK TO WORK!

Since We Last Spoke

2010-10-22T22:02:00.000-04:00

BOO!! Just in time for Halloween, PLANET GRIFFIN has returned! (Even in it's 1.5 status)... Since we last spoke, I've made mention of how I've been working towards bringing the pirate blogcast back full force... Considering how long these posts have been coming along, I must apologize to all the followers who have waited (and waited, and waited, and... you get the idea...) patiently for the world of The NEXT 100 to return. Of course, yours truly, The Infamous RodBuddah, has been moving silently among you, gathering the tools I need for the new 2011 venture ( which will require a terrabyte just to archive it)--- I've been bursting at the seams to say it aloud, but have been forced to play it all close to my chest. I will say that on top of the FIERCE CREATURES OGN (which may top out at 320 pages with all the trimmings), a new series that's guaranteed to draw out the Modern Warfare junkies (the cat's coming outta the bag slowly... There WILL be pics to follow up), and the voice...

Yes, the voice of The Infamous RodBuddah himself, as I will be hosting an upcoming podcast (the title to be announced, seeing as how it will be titled something entirely new and I don't have the time to screw around with those who like to hold domain names 'hostage' just for the hell of it!). It's all been a WHOLE LOTTA WORK, but in true RodBuddah fashion, I LOVE THIS WORK THAT I DO! To ALL my indie bretheren out there, NOW is the time to get your act together! If WE don't do everything in our power to bring the masses back to the shelves, the corporations will raze this industry to the ground!!! Yes, I said it--- look at Marvel and Disney--- if they don't change that attitude within the coming year; price changes AND content, it's gonna become a smaller world than you think!

BACK TO WORK FOLKS!

Gaining New Orbit (Once The Hyperdrive Is Fixed...)

2010-08-14T22:15:00.000-04:00

It's been a long time, I shouldn't have left you, without a quick
word to step to. Of course, the one and only pirate blogcast, PLANET
GRIFFIN, is still under construction (this time due to technical difficulties,
Nothing too major, though), and yours truly, The Infamous RodBuddah, is still
hard at work repairing and preparing for the ridiculous amount of rants, raves,
and NEXT 100 goodness you've come to expect... In the meantime, don't hesitate
to go back through the PLANET archives and see what it's all about, recommend your
friends, family, enemies, etc. to experience the madness of the indy rebel and stand
by for what's to come (new artwork, new NEXT 100 news, and the future of what this
blogcast is prepared to follow up with--- trust me, you're definitely gonna want to
be around when it jumps off!). Until then, like the Millenium Falcon, she'll still
make the Kesel Run in less than 4 parsecs--- just gotta fix the hyperdrive...

Planet Griffin Public Service Announcement

2010-07-16T18:34:00.003-04:00

Once again, returning to your atmosphere, the pirate blogcast known as PLANET GRIFFIN is here! Just a word of note today--- while making a few changes on the site, I inadvertently erased the Network blogs link to the page... To those of you who linked up to the site through that application, I'm still appreciative to you for signing in. I may put it back up later.

Relax--- PLANET GRIFFIN is still here (in fact, it's about to spawn some new tricks to which I'm very excited about... In the world of show and tell, I'd rather show it and let it speak for itself.)

Stay tuned, True Believers--- more to come shortly!

THE BIG BUZZ: Grindhouse Uncovers The Missing Reel

2010-07-06T04:06:00.008-04:00

I stumbled upon this from NEXT 100 member JAY POTTS over at The World of Hurt... Needless to say, as a fan of the Grindhouse/Blaxploitation era, I had to throw this one out there to those who follow the pirate blogcast known as PLANET GRIFFIN!
KURT LLOYD and DAVID WALKER took their love for 70's grindhouse and did something about it, creating a 10 minute show for the love of the genre! THE MISSING REEL examines 3 movies from the sub genre and points out their place in the context of Hollywood lore. Complete with all of the bad jump cuts, commercial trailers, and griminess of the time period without a single loss of life for being there. Kurt and David developed a pilot for the hope of getting distribution, but they need the continued support of those of us who still love the genre, so be sure to check'em out on their facebook page. New episodes are planned, so stay tuned for the next episode! This is THE BIG BUZZ!

Don't Take My Word For It

2010-07-03T18:57:00.008-04:00

"Something that Pope brought up got me thinking. Basically he was saying that one reason he did his Batman 100 was in order to get the DC readers. Kind of hits a sour note with me ---I mean, I have mixed feelings about it-- I fully believe that living off of your art is a hustle and you have to pull some scams and do shit to get by but then there's the idea that I think it kind of hurts the culture of comics that so many good creators live in the shadow of DC/Marvel.

And even if I'm less hyped on Pope's batman than his other work, maybe it was something he really wanted to do and I'm sure it payed better than self publishing. I just think Pope is a lot better than Batman, and where a lot of dudes can do a decent batman comic, he's the only one that can do that specific mix of cool enough for girls thick, black batter ink comics that I miss on the shelves. That's a big part of this rant, I wish Batman 100 was years more THB or another Buzz buzz.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I think creators have a lot more power than waiting for DC/Marvel to call. I always joke that if I needed them to co-sign my career I'd still be waiting."
-Brandon Graham

"MC's should have OTHER WAYS of getting money
That's to say learn other things beside music
Make money elsewhere, Hip-Hop you won't abuse it
Too many MC's, just emcee/
so their longevity, is based on an Uncle Tom
at the record company"
-KRS-1

"The creators who have done amazing work for the “industry” – literally created masterpieces and future corporate properties – who as employees of said “industry” were then cast aside, CRUSHED. Oh, y’know, Siegel, Shuster, Simon, Kirby, Ditko, Whitney, Rude, and then all the freelancers who were popular once, or just “got work” forever but now haven’t worked for years – like Tom Grindberg who can’t get work these days because his Neal Adams-like style is just out of style…"
-Frank Santoro

Boom. Here's to the 4th of July.

Ghettomanga Contest Serves Up The Goods

2010-07-03T16:57:00.005-04:00

Independence Day stands as a double meaning here at PLANET GRIFFIN... As an American holiday where we like to gather our families together to watch things explode, and the boiling point of underground indies as they begin their creative march on the mainstream--- a march I plan to buy the tickets to!

Speaking to NEXT 100 affiliate SAMAX AMEN over at GHETTOMANGA, I've learned of two contests he's promoting and wanted to make sure the word got heard. FELIPE SMITH, formerly of MBQ fame, has long since graduated to the Manga capital of Japan, becoming the first African American to publish a major series there known as PEEPO CHOO--- a series that's captured the Japanese readers' attention in droves! Anyway, Samax got his hands on a few copies of the recently released translated version of the series and is giving them away ahead of the American release date of JULY 13th.

CONTEST #ONE: Send an email with your name and mailing address to contests@ghettoManga.com to enter the drawing. Just make sure to put PEEPO CHOO MANGA CONTEST in the subject line to get counted! You must be 18 years or older to enter, since the Japanese has a far stranger tolerance of over the top sex and violence than most american parents...

CONTEST # TWO:

GhettoManga presents The Felipe Smith Fan Art contest! Just draw one or more characters from Peepo Choo or MBQ or even a drawing of Felipe himself, and the winner will cop a free copy of the PEEPO CHOO vol 1! Any medium is fine... draw, paint, and even cosplay with photographs, just make sure to put FELIPE SMITH ART CONTEST in the subject line AND include your mailing address to enter! You can enter both contests or one at a time, but make sure you include the correct info to each contest you enter.

Both contests end Friday, July 9th!

Black & Blue DIY: Guerilla Filmmakers On The Rise

2010-07-02T00:15:00.005-04:00

A couple of years ago, a young collective of guerilla filmmakers from North Carolina became disheartened and bored as hell with some of the genre garbage that Hollywood continued to churn out and decided to make their own movies. By 2008, the group quickly burst onto the independent film circuit (including CANNE) with a modest budgeted flick known as THE DOGS OF CHINATOWN, a martial arts actioner that quickly turned heads with it's outrageous stunts and innovative techniques that follows in the DIY tradition of directors like ROBERT RODRIGUEZ...
Of course, it was merely a warm-up to what they were really planning next.

Under the banner of ALL ACES MEDIA, the director/producer/writer craziness of MICAH MOORE and BLAKE FAUCETTE have been tirelessly gathering up some of the best up-and-coming fight choreographers around and began shooting test footage for something completely different... BEAT DOWN BOOGIE is currently in it's raw stage (the first run footage you see above was shot with a handheld camera), but the buzz that's being generated right now has earned AAM the label of 'New School Guerilla Filmmaking At It's Best', as this mix of JACKIE CHAN meets SAMURAI CHAMPLOO for the hip hop set continues shooting through the summer.

Stay tuned to PLANET GRIFFIN and catch more coverage on their BeatDownBoogie production blog.

Dogs of Chinatown Opera Trailer from All Aces Media on Vimeo.

FIRST LOOK: The Green Hornet Strikes Again!

2010-06-22T03:56:00.003-04:00

"... Another challenge for the Green Hornet, his aide, Kato, and their rolling arsenal, The Black Beauty. On police records, a wanted criminal, the Green Hornet is really Britt Reid, owner/publisher of The Daily Sentinel... His dual identity known only to his secretary and the district attorney. AND NOW, to protect the rights and lives of decent citizens, rides The Green Hornet..."

After surviving the personal double whammy that was my birthday as well as Father's Day (yes, I belong to BOTH clubs, thank you...), I personally want to say thank you all for the well wishes and support you have given, as well as acknowledge the fact that the pirate blogcast has swelled its ranks in such a short period of time--- to all of you, allow me to personally welcome you to PLANET GRIFFIN!

When George W. Trindle first developed the show as a companion piece to the mega successful Batman series back in 1966, even he would never have imagined the impact his creation would have decades later. Come JANUARY 14, 2011, Trindles' vigilante hero returns with Seth Rogen, Jay Chou, Christoph Waltz, Cameron Diaz, Edward James Olmos, and Tom Wilkinson. From the looks of the newly released trailer, this flick looks to be a winner!

Bulletproof Summer: NEXT 100 Alum Preps New Heat

2010-06-17T02:11:00.006-04:00

Man, if you folks aren't paying attention to this NEXT 100 member, it'll cost you! PLANET GRIFFIN covered the introduction of ASARU MUSHAVU over a year ago (don't believe me? check here), and within that time, he's been tucked away in the lab, putting the finishing touches on his latest weapon of mass construction: The fearsome femme fatale known as TEFLON.

The finished piece above made it's debut yesterday, and already the blogspace has been buzzing of his arrival on the scene--- of course, if you've been keeping up with PLANET GRIFFIN and THE NEXT 100 scene, you'll have long been anxious to see what Asaru's been cooking on that art table! Check out his gallery over at DeviantArt to see more, and stay tuned to the Planet for more upcoming news on the new gun in town!

As a side note, today's post makes for an interesting present as yours truly, the Infamous RodBuddah, celebrates yet another birthday, so if you get a chance, raise a toast for me!

The New Nostalgia Pt. 1

2010-06-15T03:53:00.006-04:00

GEOFF JOHNS has really been proud of his latest character over at DC--- so much so, that he's anxious to unveil AQUALAD not only in the upcoming BRIGHTEST DAY 4 storyline, but also his animated debut in YOUNG JUSTICE on Cartoon Network... Now, this image, while it looks great, is raising the hackles on a lot of fanboy necks, further adding fuel to the current DC fire... What is that you ask?
Welcome back to PLANET GRIFFIN.

There has been a growing rumble concerning the 'whitewashing' of DC Characters (Chris Sims over at Comics Alliance referred to this as 'Regressive Storytelling'), where ethnic characters are being killed off, or seriously 'misplaced', to replace them with their original white counterparts. At this past HeroesCon, Senior story editor Ian Sattler was asked about the dilemma---

"It's so hard for me to be on the other side because it's not our intention. There is a reason behind it all. We don't see it that way and strive very hard to have a diverse DCU. I mean, we have green, pink, and blue characters. We have the Great Ten out there and I have counter statistics, but I won't get into that. It's not how we perceived it. We get the same thing about how we treat our female characters."

--- Needless to say, the overall impression gave many in the audience a reason to pause. Many DC fans centered their attentions on DC's Creative Director Geoff Johns himself, who was primarily responsible for taking characters like Green Lantern, The Flash, The Atom, Legion of Super Heroes, and Aquaman back to 'the good old days'--- attempting to recapture those nostalgic memories creators fondly remembered as kids. Sims says '...We're in an industry right now that wants to constantly reset itself, running on nostalgia rather than innovation, moving backwards instead of moving forwards, it seems to be what the majority of comics readers want...' I agree.

Strange it seems that while Johns' is not considered racist in his motivations, he's rushing to PROVE that he's not racist in giving us his latest creation (the latest addition to the animated series, as told by one source, was actually last minute to the staff during pre-production), which puts him in that position of 'damned if you do, damned if you don't'. The subject of race in comics is nothing new, neither is the treatment of the subject nothing new--- in fact, it's considered business as usual... Which also explains why the industry's been in a drag for so long. The only thing that needs to be kept in it's proper place is the idea of nostalgia itself.

Everything else should be dragged, kicking and screaming, into the future.

Downloading 'The Marvel Way'

2010-06-05T03:25:00.004-04:00

Rummaging through the recent news, I came across an announcement from MARVEL concerning the upcoming release of the 80 page INVINCIBLE IRON MAN ANNUAL #1 by Fraction and Giandomencio... Marvel's idea is to release the print edition and the digital app the same day of release. Now, while some bloggers are touting this as '... taking the BIG TWO battle to another level in serialized comic distribution...', it does come with a slight hitch (and while some may see this as nitpicky, the economy gives us all a reason to pause)...

In it's printed version, the book will retail for $4.99 (like standard issues aren't expensive enough), in it's digital version, it will come in 3 parts via the Marvel app at a standard price of $1.99 per chapter, making the app more expensive than the print copy. While the advantage in digital distribution makes books supremely less expensive, Marvel's additional charges kinda defeats the purpose of wanting to support their new digital initiative. While this is only one title, this is definitely a precursor of what's coming.

From a business standpoint, the entire Marvel initiative makes sense: Disney owns Marvel... Steve Jobs, that creator of fine iPad technology, sits on the Board of Disney Directors (due to the sale of Pixar)... Marvel saddles up for the 'new digital frontier' (via the Apple iPad store) to charge more for 'less expensive distribution'--- which also explains why the winning the lawsuit against the Kirby heirs is so vitally important--- but that is another story.

THE BIG BUZZ: The Rising Of A Black Sun

2010-06-05T03:02:00.003-04:00

Hi, PLANET GRIFFIN here, following up on all the chatter out there concerning this little piece of High Friction Science Fiction--- back in mid May, a little company known as BLACK SUN ENTERTAINMENT released a CGI concept short called AZUREUS RISING. Produced and directed by DAVID WEINSTEIN, the short has recently won Best Short Film from the Malibu Film Festival--- basically, this is high concept sci-fi that ROCKS!

Feel The Magic, Feel The Roar...

2010-06-02T18:27:00.006-04:00

Looks like Lion-O may get the last laugh after all... Warner Bros. announced today that an all new THUNDERCATS series will debut in 2011 as Anime house Studio 4°C will create a 'reimagining' of the popular Rankin/Bass show which ran from 1985 to 1990. WBA says that though the show will remain true to the original in some ways, it won't be another carbon copy of what came before... If so, then CARTOON NETWORK may have struck new gold in a previously mined out spot!

Comic News And The Latest Fashion

2010-05-28T06:43:00.011-04:00

Ah, this old chestnut... WEDNESDAY COMICS has finally been released as a hardcover... Given the state of the industry since the last time you saw this image on PLANET GRIFFIN, and given the discounted prices to which it can be obtained, this edition is worthy of your bookshelf... Better make it count, seeing as how DC has announced it's price hike of $3.99 of standard comics across the board beginning in August...

July 8th is X-MEN DAY with the release of X-MEN #1 by Paco Medina. Marvel touts that this is the first #1 issue of X-Men in almost 20 years--- apparently, we forgot...

... Lastly, TOM SPURGEON over at CBR raised a few questions concerning what arguments should be had across comic internet blogs... I've decided to attempt a few of my own answers to the questions he posed... Just to get it started...

Does reprinting archival comics have a moral component?
Not really. While this particular area of the genre owes a great deal to those creators who came before us, the companies that hold the rights to said works rarely kick back royalties in a timely fashion, so while a moral component does exist here, it's not necessarily adhered to.

Why are so many Direct Market shops still female unfriendly?
For the same reason that comics have been male oriented for so long---comics have long been considered exploitive power fantasies for young geeks who couldn't find an audience with the very same female crowd they longed for... Some of those geeky kids grew up to run said businesses that never sought to scare the females away, they just didn't know how to approach them. Despite the fact that times have changed and some progress has been made, that age old stigma of geeky guys who grew up to become geeky men who still don't know how to approach the female audience at large... I mean, have you ever walked into one of these shops to find Brad Pitt behind the glass?

What are all these superhero comics really saying?
In such a general term, what can they say? The same recurring themes have been recycled for decades by the Big 2; not sure whether to go with innovation or nostaglia (and by the way fellas, one cannot serve two masters). It's still cool to have the big guns, big fights, and big breasts, as long as there's a different way to present it. The phrase 'Everything's derivative' exists for a reason... And not to get it twisted, but even though superhero movies may produce big numbers at the multiplex, why is it that the comics these movies are based on don't produce the same in the Direct Shops? Think about it.

Flowing In The Breez

2010-05-25T04:45:00.004-04:00

Checking out Brandon Graham's RoyalBoiler Blog (What IS that kid on?! I want some, whatever it is!), I came across a blurb featuring a recent reading done by BREEZ EVAHFLOWIN--- I can't even view comics in the same light after seeing this! Twisted brilliance!

All The Rage For Rachel: Volume 2 Debut!

2010-05-21T01:29:00.006-04:00

As some of you may know by now, original NEXT 100 member JOHN ASTON released RACHEL RAGE VOL. 2 this past Tuesday... The indie cult hit is quickly hitting it's stride as the South Carolina writer/creator's moving into his second story arc, SHORT TIME WOMAN. (Check out the OldeTowneComix link on the sidebar to order Volume 2, as well as Volume 1- HEARTLAND)
Volume 2 compiles 3 supplemental stories to the Rachel universe which were previously seen and one tale, The Big Caged Bird, that's new to print, unseen on the website (another reason to purchase the book since that tale not only introduces a new character integral to the Rachel Rage storyline, but also bridges the 2 volumes).

Also included within Volume 2 are pin-ups showcasing the established indie players (like NEXT 100 alums SAMAX AMEN from GHETTOMANGA.COM and multiple award winner JAY POTTS of THE WORLD OF HURT) as well as the new upstarts (the incredible debut of ERIK WILLIAMS, DEREK DAVIS and RAYMOND SANDERS)--- Of course, I save my own contribution for last, but certainly not least.

John Aston's work is definitely cut out for him as he preps the next chapter installment of STW for the site, as well as other surprises planned for later in the year (more on that later, but I can personally GUARANTEE that you'll want to be here for the exclusive first word!). After reading the work for yourself, you too will be celebrating the arrival of the new queen of the grindhouse set: RACHEL RAGE!

Heroes Are Dead. Long Live Heroes.

2010-05-19T01:03:00.007-04:00

Well, now that HEROES has been cancelled due to low ratings, it seems that the Great-Networks-That-Could are looking to do it again. Looks as though the comic genre for television isn't dead yet. Of course, you be the judge... They could be onto something here...If they get them right...

NO ORDINARY FAMILY

THE CAPE

You Cannot Fake What You Do...

2010-05-13T01:57:00.003-04:00

"To be a cartoonist, you must actually make cartoons. I bring this up because I've met a lot of people who say they want to be cartoonists, but they don't have any cartoons..."
- Kyle Baker

"Most comics publishers are kind of dumb and don't have a lot of money. They publish a lot of bad stuff. They turn down a lot of good stuff. Sometimes it's for stupid reasons. Other times it's for reasons that make good economic sense but still suck. There are two ways to deal with this situation. One is to draw the kind of comic that appeals to comics publishers. This is a great way to go, except for one thing: you can't fake it. A cartoonist who cynically crafts a comic to fit a market can never compete with a cartoonist who draws a comic about the same thing because he genuinely loves it. You know why Scott Pilgrim and Penny Arcade are blockbusters? Because those guys genuinely love jokes about Super Mario. You know why their dozens of imitators are less successful? Because they're imitators."
- Shaenon K. Garrity, editor VIZ Media

Coming back to broadcast depth to remind you that comics in particular and art in general is NOT dead, I've been checking out the recent STUMPTOWN COMICS FESTIVAL and came across audio of their SELF PUBLISHING LIKE A ROCKSTAR panel in its entirety. Very informative and definitely worth sharing to those of us who believe in the stories we create, shape, and prep for the world at large. Take a few minutes and give a listen...

Self-Publishing Like A Rockstar from Erika Moen on Vimeo.

Iconism Doesn't Need Words

2010-05-10T23:45:00.004-04:00

PLANET GRIFFIN pays the tribute to those who have long since been just due.

FRANK FRAZETTA. LENA HORNE. Salud.

The New Machete Movement

2010-05-06T10:29:00.005-04:00

AIN'T IT COOL NEWS has been flooding the market since yesterday, spreading the word of the release of ROBERT RODRIGUEZ' new cut of the MACHETE trailer--- and it ROCKS! The real kicker is it's special message to the administration of Arizona! In response to this, the New Machete Movement is now in full swing, and you can't BUY press like this! PLANET GRIFFIN fully supports the Movement, so enjoy!

Your Mind Is Not Yet Ready For Something This Big...

2010-05-04T23:18:00.010-04:00

CHRISTOPHER NOLAN has nurtured the idea of what can only be described as 'The Existential Heist' for the better part of a decade... Looking back on Nolan's track record, almost everything he's done has been the equivalent of 'Slight of Hand Storytelling'--- from the mindbending, backward-stylings of MEMENTOto finding 'true magic' between 2 illusionists in THE PRESTIGE to the success application of 'Chaos Theory' in the now legendary THE DARK KNIGHT--- Nolan has positioned himself to now introduce his biggest trick yet. The sci-fi actioner INCEPTION has been, without a doubt, one of the closest kept secrets in Hollywood.

Even then, seeing has how Nolan has also proven to be a master of misdirection, knowing anything about the project at this stage can realistically be considered purposeful. Welcome back to PLANET GRIFFIN.
Sporting an international cast with locales to match, INCEPTION is about the next unexplored level since plugging into the MATRIX--- dreams. DOM COBB (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a master thief, though not of physical trinkets or money... Dom specializes in stealing valuable secrets from deep within the subconscious mind during its most vulnerable point--- the dream state.

In the world of corporate espionage, Cobb's viewed as a Morpheus figure; an international fugitive that the world's not ready for... Of course, Cobb's offered a shot at redemption if he can pull off the impossible: Inception. Rather than steal an idea, Cobb and his team must plant one.
Like all impossible missions, nothing is ever what it seems, and Cobb and company must now fight an enemy that seemingly knows their every move... An enemy that only Cobb could've seen coming... Hence, the movie's infamous tagline: Your mind is the scene of the crime.

Personally, I can't wait for July 16th when the film opens... And once you realize Nolan's track record has yet to see one disappointment, you too may bear witness to the next big thing!

PLANET GRIFFIN WEEKEND EDITION: Picking The Right One

2010-04-30T05:39:00.012-04:00

The novel is massive, rich with backstory and subtlety that didn’t make it even to the very subtle and beautiful Swedish film. So we want to expand upon the world of the Swedish film by drawing upon the material from the novel. I think it’ll allow us to do things impossible in either of the previous incarnations. We’re planning a big program, with a unique scope to it.” Since the comics will not be a straight adaptation, readers would see episodes taking place both before and after the familiar events of the film, continuing the adventures of Eli and Oskar.
- Scott Allie, Dark Horse

Whoops!

Not too long ago, DARK HORSE COMICS and HAMMER FILMS announced several projects slated for future release, including a comic based on the US remake of the Swedish vampire movie known as LET THE RIGHT ONE IN (The American remake will be titled Let Me In). Dark Horse has also been looking at the original source material, the original novel by creator JOHN AJVIDE LINDQVIST. The problem with all of this is that no one from the DH camp cleared any of this with Lindqvist himself, who learned of this deal only after the fact.

Again... Whoops!

When interviewed by the Swedish Metro News, Lindqvist has already completed a prequel of his own slated for a future publication, and voiced his disapproval on the matter:

...Nobody has asked me about this and I think that the project stinks. I am looking into this matter and hope that they have no right to do this...

I've read the novel and watched the original film ( a violently bittersweet tale between a misunderstood, 12 year old outcast named Oskar and his chance meeting with his new neighbor, Eli, a vampire girl who was bitten at a very young age. Try to imagine a bloodier version of Twilight without the teen angst.), and found both media to be masterworks in their own right. To remake either of these seems pointless, and based upon the situation at hand, it would seem that Dark Horse may have to deal with future litigation... Only goes to show that if you don't work harder at developing original subject matter, it could come back to bite you... So to speak.

Special thanks to Warren Ellis

THE BIG BUZZ: Finally, THE ROCK Has Come Back !

2010-04-27T00:15:00.009-04:00

Maybe it was the dismal returns of TOOTH FAIRY and RACE TO WITCH MOUNTAIN... Maybe it was the weak productions of ensemble flicks like DOOM, BE COOL, and the remake of WALKING TALL... (there was also SOUTHLAND TALES, but that's a weirdo bomb in a class by itself.) Maybe, just maybe, it was the total recall of passing Arnold in a crowded club in THE RUNDOWN, as a metaphoric gesture of saying, "It's your turn..." Whatever the reason, it appears that DWAYNE 'THE ROCK' JOHNSON is out to make good on his return to the hardcore action genre. Oh yes, PLANET GRIFFIN returns with THE BIG BUZZ!

VARIETY recently went on record to say that the upcoming film, FASTER, definitely promises to deliver the Rock as, what many people once assumed, the next great action star, as well as reveal the actor in a completely different light from his previous films.

Looking for absolute payback in the murder of his brother 10 years earlier, The Rock plays the double crossed ex-con willing to move hell and earth to find his brother's killers. Meanwhile, CARLA GUGINO (SIN CITY) and BILLY BOB THORNTON (SLING BLADE) play the detectives who turn out to be equally determined to to stop him.

MAGGIE GRACE, MOON BLOODGOOD, ADEWALE AKINNUOYE-AGBAJE, and OLIVER JACKSON-COHEN round out the cast when FASTER hits theaters NOVEMBER 19th.

Sandbox Spaghetti West: Rockstar Returns With A Vengence

2010-04-24T03:43:00.004-04:00

Now here's something cool to sink your teeth into! In the world of videogames, the most hotly anticipated game of the year comes from the innovators of 'sandbox' gaming, ROCKSTAR GAMES... This time, instead of the urban blight of Liberty City, the setting is sent through the wayback machine to the daze of the Spaghetti West--- RED DEAD REDEMPTION is now ready for platform release of May 18th.
As an added bonus, Rockstar has even enlisted Director JOHN HILLCOAT to helm a 30 minute trailer of the game utilizing machinma (Machinma is a creative narrative using the video game's assets, which is basically an in-game animated film). Hillcoat, who reinvigorated the western genre with THE PROPOSITION, has finished a current edit which turned out to be so good, the trailer has been upgraded to broadcast--- the 30 minute short will air on FOX Saturday, MAY 15th.

Judging from the overall look of this platformer, Rockstar games has really done its homework, consuming seemingly every italian spaghetti western ever made--- from the panoramic vistas of SERGIO LEONE to the over-the-top violence of SERGIO CORBUCCI.

A Glimpse Into The Future

2010-04-23T05:59:00.002-04:00

PLANET GRIFFIN LABS brings you another behind-the-scenes glimpse into the making of the FIERCE CREATURES OGN, which has been slowly getting back on track for mass production after dealing with everything else that life seems to throw at us all. As a shirt design, it's already showing mighty promise (of course, getting the materials together is difficult when your 9 to 5 grind is more demanding than most)... Keep your dreams alive and it will reward you highly in the end!

THE BIG BUZZ: Building A Better B-Movie

2010-04-23T05:08:00.004-04:00

During the days of the release of GRINDHOUSE, Co-Creator ROBERT RODRIGUEZ held a video contest during the SXSW film festival 2007 in honor of the faux 70's flick to see who could come up with the best mock exploitation trailer. The winner came in the form of a broken down hobo who takes the law into his own hands with his nickels and dimes in one hand, and a big frakkin' shotgun in the other... Despite how cheesy this may sound, HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN not only took first prize in the competition, but it put Canadian writer/director JASON EISENER on the map!

Utilizing the same creativity that Rodriguez put into his first feature, EL MARIACHI, Eisener began showing his works to the filmmaking community at large, wowing the crowds at film festivals worldwide... This past monday, Eisener took his HOBO creation one step further.

Shooting for the full feature version of HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN began shooting in Nova Scotia with legendary actor RUTGER HAUER in the title role, replacing the original HOBO, Canadian actor DAVID BRUNT (who'll still cameo as a dirty cop in the film version). The trailer, already the stuff of cult legend in Canada, has drawn the interest of directors and stars within the Hollywood community as Hauer is reportedly playing up the role with the same manic energy he created in the cult classics THE HITCHER (the psychotic John Ryder) and BLADE RUNNER (the iconic replicant Roy Batty). Oh yes, the miasma of 70's grindhouse is getting a kickstart again, and the idea of 'building a better B movie' is getting better by the minute!

This is PLANET GRIFFIN and THE BIG BUZZ!

SHOTGUN MESSENGER: NEMESIS #1

2010-04-19T13:39:00.006-04:00

PLANET GRIFFIN has received a few emails regarding the critical state of the comic industry (Keep'em coming gang! Planetgriffin@gmail.com), and with the timing of certain comics-turn-media properties, I decided to introduce a new rant/comics critique section on the PLANET, now known as SHOTGUN MESSENGER!
(Named after the George Yepes painting) Today's double barrel is trained on the newly released post KICK ASS comic, NEMESIS, as well as news and reactions to some of the crap that has yet to flush...

In the world of comics, it seems lately that no one's getting more press copy than MARK MILLAR, who just announced on the opening of his latest property-turned-celluloid reality, KICK ASS, that HE himself will be directing his next comic adaptation in his native Scotland, slated to begin production this summer, as well as following up with WANTED 2, which is already in active development. To top it off, Mark made a related statement, stating that Kick Ass was "...The reinvention of super heroes..."

Boom.

Not since the likes of FRANK MILLER, ALAN MOORE, and NEIL GAIMAN has anyone reached the tipping point of success on two fronts as Millar has. He says that his goal is to have the same type of impact as STAN LEE had in the 60's, but for a modern audience. Millar states that he's been approached by several directors, hungry to adapt Nemesis, even before anyone had seen the story or artwork (Millar calls them 'pompous vultures')! The writer says that he'll hold out until he can be sure of the quality director that he feels Nemesis warrants.

Millar's been catching alot of flack lately about tooting his own horn, which has raised quite a few hackles on the necks of many. ("...I don't like him because he toots his own horn...", "I think he's buying into the hype...", etc....) Quite frankly, I don't see the big deal in it... He's merely 'getting in touch with his inner 15 year old', right? Therefore, he's doing the triumphant dance that a 15 year old would do, so let him dance. Some of this is actually coming from RETAILERS, which makes no sense to me--- the books are SELLING like hotcakes, DESPITE your opinion of it, not to mention the fact you're pimping this title WHILE you trash it, so that makes you look somewhat STUPID for it. Good grief, folks: YOU HYPED HIM!

But I digress.

Anyways, NEMESIS is nothing more than a simple flip of a tried and truly tired concept: What if Batman had the mindset of the Joker and fought the law rather than uphold it? DC is up in arms on the subject (and despite what you may have read on the contrary online, my source inside DC says 'the higher ups are grinning through clenched teeth on the subject'), which I think boils down to the fact that MARVEL FINALLY got a Batman archetype of their own, and DC can't touch them... (The idea is super simplistic in the same way that Seth MacFarlane dumbed down the Simpsons formula to create Family Guy... 150 million and a multimedia franchise later... Same thing here.)

After reading the first issue in less time than it takes to fry eggs, I cannot see what all the lambasting is about... Really. Okay, let's look at the story itself, since McNIVEN earned his money on the interiors...

NEMESIS opens with a little bit of simple misdirection--- Tokyo's best cop is held hostage by the titular villain, with the cavalry rushing into a building to save our hero. In fact, the cavalry is looking in the wrong place, as their entry is cut short by enough explosive to level the building in which they stand. Our hero is actually liquefied by an oncoming bullet train which happens to be on time.

Fast forward to Washington DC where we meet our next target, CHIEF BLAKE MORROW, putting down an armed robbery single handed. Shortly thereafter, he learns that he's been targeted by the Nemesis in the form of a small card detailing WHO will die, WHEN he dies, and HOW he dies. Meanwhile, high above the city, Nemesis stands on the wing of Air Force One ( a la the gremlin from Twilight Zone, with the President acting as John Lithgow), preparing his forced entry into the plane by way of solid slugs from a railgun! Now, one blogger went so far as to call this particular sequence as '...The silliest thing he's ever seen...' C'mon man, we're talking about COMICS here! Besides, if Batman can do it--- my point made.

The book ends with Nemesis making a televised announcement to his new opponent that the game is about to begin, and just to drive the point home, the camera pulls back to reveal his latest hostage--- the United States President! (Not Obama, who's been in enough bandwagon-riding comics to last me a lifetime!)

Nemesis in 23 pages... The 24th page is devoted to Millar himself. It's here that I see audiences' nitpicking. Sure, he's cocky to the point of a confidence that most DON'T have (But again, he's smelling his own ass right now, and unless you're the ones holding his ass cheeks open, then let the man inhale!). Mark exclaims,

"... we're literally working for free in order to own the rights entirely (Keep in mind, McNIVEN is the only one working for free, while Mark is STILL riding that WANTED paycheck... Hey Mark, what happened to your collaboration with TONY HARRIS and WAR HEROES?! Tony got stuck holding the bill and suffering foot-and-mouth disease following YOUR lead) and believe me, there is no greater feeling in the world than owning your own creations. (So true.) It's glorious and very satisfying and maybe just exactly what we need right now in an industry where sometimes we rely a little too much on the work and ideas of other people. (Yeah Mark, it was called your entry into this business) It's also worth remembering that without our predecessors we wouldn't even have the kind of deals we have at places like ICON (Owned by MARVEL... That deal was made lip blistering special for your chapped ass, dude... Think about how you pitched Nemesis in the first place and tell me you couldn't smell rival opportunity in the room...?) and it's to the men and women who paved the way for creator-owned comic books that I'd like to dedicate this series."

Immediately following that statement, he concludes: " Fucking hell, that all actually sounded worryingly sincere."

Now, these things are only pompous if you allow them to be. PLANET GRIFFIN can also see the humor in it, so we can't nitpick to hard with these things. As long as Mark never forgets that his livelihood is based on those who BELIEVE in his works, he should be okay... Of course, his spoken demeanor and his written voice are two completely different things... Judge wisely in divining such words...

But what do I know?! I talk it like I walk it, and that record's spun daily! This is PLANET GRIFFIN, where the orbit doesn't change on account of bad weather!

THE BIG BUZZ: The Return Of The Wrong Mexican

2010-04-19T10:27:00.005-04:00

GrindHouse (noun): American slang term for a particular genre of 70's films and the theaters that ran them. Known for it's non-stop lineups of double and triple billed B movies, grindhouses ran mostly exploitive films that weren't usually found in the A-list theaters; with film prints often shown in the poorest quality (severely scratchy negatives, clipped dialogue, etc.)... The home video boom of the 80's rendered the grindhouse set obsolete, but the thematics of the genre still holds true to this day (The Direct-to-DVD Market, B Movie indies, Mixed subgenres, etc.) . The subgenres that spawned from grindhouse (blaxploitation, Women-In-Prison, Cheap horror, Kung Fu quickies, Italian crime, Euro-trash, Spaghetti Westerns, etc.) are still considered among the most memorable moments in film history--- considering that many A-list blockbusters today still borrows from those 70's elements.

Okay, enough of that.... Let's get on with the BIG BUZZ, shall we?

PLANET GRIFFIN, that pirate blogcast of pop culture and the bane of profane elements of mainstream fare, brings you yet another edition of THE BIG BUZZ. Since appearing as a trailer in the ill-fated, yet still appreciated, GRINDHOUSE back in 2007, fanboy audiences everywhere have wondered when creator ROBERT RODRIGUEZ will deliver on the full length treatment--- Dimension Films announces on SEPTEMBER 3, the bloody revenge tale of the Mexican Federale will finally be told, and with the buzz of the all star cast (Jeff Fahey, Robert DeNiro, Cheech Marin, a post prison Michelle Rodriguez, Jessica Alba, a moment of clarity filled Lindsay Lohan and a Pre-sex slave scandal Steven Seagal), the emergence of the new Mexploitation cinema appears to be eminent!

Rodriguez, along with directing partner Ethan Maniquis, will produce the film while finishing up his follow up film, PREDATORS (yes, that one)--- after that, Rodriguez may well turn his attentions back to the Machete property as Dimension Films made a follow up announcement that they seek to complete MACHETE as a trilogy! (Hence, the mexploitation franchise begins)

Here's the breakdown:

A former renegade Federale (Trejo) wanders the backstreets of Texas after the shakedown of a local drug lord (Seagal). Offered a job to assassinate a corrupt senator (DeNiro), Machete is double crossed by the man that hired him (Fahey), resulting in the payback fuelled rampage which involves a taco slinger (post Fast & Furious alum Rodriguez), a gun wielding socialite (Lohan), the Padre (Marin), and the ICE agent Sartana (Alba) who's mysteriously connected to Machete.

As a longtime fan of the 70's grindhouse set, I will be in full 42nd street mode for this one, fighting my way in line to the theater, taking my life in my hands along with scores of like-minded fans--- which is exactly what the grindhouse experience is supposed to be.

Stay tuned for more PLANET GRIFFIN and THE BIG BUZZ!

Fraction Brings New Math This Summer

2010-04-19T07:47:00.005-04:00

Back in 2006, I remember the first time I met MATT FRACTION--- a little bundle of pop culture energy who took time to match knowledge, blow-for-blow, with yours truly. He began to tell me about a tale he scripted, smashing together all of the things he loved about the spy genre (and a curious love for a little italian fumetti called DIABOLIK ). He signed a first issue copy and gave it to me... The book was called CASANOVA.

Casanova Quinn, debaucherous playboy thief for hire, is kidnapped from his reality and 'switched out' in an alternate reality where his 'other self' is a 'super secret agent' working for his father (in a S.H.I.E.L.D. kinda way) and the mighty E.M.P.I.R.E. --- forced to act as a double agent under the evil iron fist of NEWMAN XENO ( a supercriminal archetype WORTH the ink he's printed with), Casanova is caught between a rock, a hard place, and an even harder time as he struggles to stay alive in a reality that he now knows he CAN'T escape--- even as the walls begin closing in...

The 16 page, B+W IMAGE comic detailed the exploits of a thief-turned-international man of mystery-turned-multidimensional double agent turned the genre on its head, and gave comic audiences a swift kick in the cerebellum with a new smashgenre of Spy-fi Sci-Fi. With now acclaimed superstar artist GABRIEL BA (and later, his brother FABIO MOON on Volume 2) doing the 'dirty brush dance' on art duties, Matt managed to restore my faith in comic geekness once again.

Later, before the release of his equally popular Volume 2, Fraction and I would sit down at the con table together again--- this time, he produced a signed hardcover copy of LUXURIA (the collected volume 1) and gave it to me. (Of course, upon the release of my own OGN, I owe him a signed copy in return, as that was part of our arrangement) Volume 2 took a completely different turn, introducing an entire second arc of the story WITHOUT the title character (Cass went missing somewhere between the end of Volume 1 and the beginning of 2); once again defying convention and forcing audiences to go along for the ride... Of course, the storyline would float off into limbo as Fraction began to turn his scripting pencil to the boys at Mighty Marvel, reinventing their IRON FIST and IRON MAN titles, getting so busy he no longer had time for phone calls... It seemed that the questions surrounding Casanova would go unanswered...

... Until now.

Matt Fraction shall return to the groundbreaking spy equation this July, now to be published under the MARVEL ICON imprint, along with the FULL COLOR re-release of the original series (A move Fraction says would take full advantage of the new prestige arrangement between Marvel and Hachette ). The re-releasing of the two former volumes is a set up for the grand release of Volume 3, which will see the return of Gabriel Ba on art chores and Fraction finally getting around to adding up all the loose ends he left hanging for quite a while.

I seriously urge those of you who have yet to crack open this brain warping slice of spy-man skullduggery to do so. It'll definitely change your perceptions of what a good comic should be!

And Now, A Special Announcement...

2010-04-15T02:31:00.006-04:00

Tonight, PLANET GRIFFIN takes a moment to recognize a dear friend and family guy. ADARRYL GRANT not only celebrates his 35th birthday, but provides proof that angels truly exist as his little girl shines, as if to say, "... I know..."

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AD-ROCK FROM PLANET GRIFFIN!

And These Are The Breaks...

2010-04-14T01:41:00.002-04:00

Here at PLANET GRIFFIN LABS, I've been slowly getting back to the art table to continue my work while I fight the daily grind of 'sustaining and maintaining'. Believe me, it's easier sometimes to do blog posts than it is to set up the art table and get to it. But, of course, this is all academic. This page is part of the Chapter breaks within the upcoming OGN--- it's little more work, but I also believe in giving the maximum to those that are willing to pony up their hard earned dollar, therefore instead of supplying a pin-up in-between books, I would add 'break pages' in-between the chapters.

Hope you like it. Back to work, folks.

THE BIG BUZZ: D.I.Y. Guerilla Filmmakers

2010-04-14T00:47:00.007-04:00

Staying on task to continue bringing you the cool oddities of pop culture, PLANET GRIFFIN brings you another taste of THE BIG BUZZ! The Planet came across this little 7 minute short tribute film to the ruling king of First Person Shooting platforms, MODERN WARFARE 2. NIKO PUERINGER and SAM GORSKI share directorial duties for their film 'FROZEN CROSSINGS', which cost them only $209.42 to make, and has made quite an impression on YouTube after scoring over
1 million views in only 6 days!

The digital effects overall are pretty impressive considering what these guys have had to work with. The dynamic duo are already planning a Part 2 to this series and have already begun turning heads in all the right places. This film is just another great example of the growing number of DIY go-getters who believe that if you want something new, you have to create it yourself! Given more of a budget and more story, I'm positive these guys can give the Hollywood heads a run for their money!

Stay tuned to more PLANET GRIFFIN and THE BIG BUZZ!

Diamond In The Rough

2010-04-12T14:46:00.004-04:00

Following the news wire, I was surprised to see that a 19th century mansion went up for auction at the Baltimore County Courthouse in Maryland over the weekend... The historic home formerly belonging to Diamond Comic Distribution CEO, STEVE GEPPI. The foreclosure sold for 7.7 million, with an outstanding mortgage debt of 3.25 million.

Geppi originally purchased the 8 bedroom, 9 fireplace, and 9 acre estate back in 2004 for 4.8 million... Not bad for a man who made a great living from his love of comics and controlled the movement of the industry for the last 3 decades. As of late, the 'Rupert Murdoch of Comics' has been struggling to keep control of a market that's beginning to slip away from him as of late. After being sued over various investment properties, failing to renew the Disney comics license, and suffering from 'glitches' in a software meant to keep track of Diamond's massive inventory (orders improperly shipped; whole orders getting lost, etc.) , the late year has definitely not been a good year for Geppi.

One of the biggest concerns to Geppi and his comics distribution empire is the emergence of the iPad. Since previous e-readers like Kindle and Nook can't provide the full graphics package that the iPad can, MARVEL jumped at the chance to be among the first to develop an iPad app (Apple even features Marvel among the iPad special features on their online store.)... Comics in HD.

By buying digital versions directly from the creators, middlemen like Geppi begin to feel the pinch.

Now, with that said, PLANET GRIFFIN brings you the news: When Geppi won the distributor wars back in the early 90's, the industry was already undergoing massive change... IMAGE hit the scene like a runaway train, the speculator boom began, and Marvel was about to undergo a massive overhaul after a junk bond scandal threatened bankruptcy for the company. Diamond was out to capitalize fully on ALL of it. Slowly, but surely, Diamond began setting the standards: A review panel whose job it is to determine what books would sell and what wouldn't (if you had a 'name' artist or writer attached to your book, it passed automatically without review), a sales cap minimum on what book had to sell in order to remain viable (a 'show and prove' tactic for indies since 'The Big Two' had the cash to maintain), and the ever-increasing price hikes that forced many independents and underground magazines to close up shop or merge with what Diamond considered 'legitimate' studios... With Diamond's stranglehold claims of 'the best game in town', it seemed as though many self-starting creators were forced to pony up business-closing sums of cash in order to get their products exposed to a mass audience.

Remember when Marvel attempted their OWN distribution house, HEROES WORLD? Marvel boasted BIG about breaking away from Diamond, only to return to 'Geppi's House' after it failed in it's FIRST quarter of business! (Diamond bored no hard feelings, they merely printed an INSERT catalogue separate from their own Previews guide.) Keeping that in mind, it would make sense that the House of M would embrace the iPad format so readily... After all, kids make out far better downloading a digital version for $1.99 than buying the brochure for $4 bucks--- only AFTER dropping $500+ for the iPad itself to do it. With Disney backing M.U., the conglomerate merger can ultimately sidestep Geppi altogether in time. The retailer, already fearing from low sales and lost orders (i.e., Marvel, DC, etc.), see the new digital frontier as yellow banner tape across their doors and began looking to other distributor outlets (in the return of Diamond's former rival, COLDCUT rechristened as HAVEN).

Lastly, the indies were already creating an alternate avenue long before the iPad was even introduced in the form of webcomics, the advent of Digital Distribution Sites (like Drive-Thru), and venturing into the much more lucrative foreign markets where indies are viewed in a completely different light... The state of the industry in light of all this has created some rather dangerous real estate that we can't afford to buy, nor want to. With all this in mind, you could almost pity Geppi for having to sell his mansion home.

Almost.

UPDATE: It was released earlier today that effective September 1, 2010, Marvel will move it's graphic novels and trades (notice I didn't refer to them as OGN's, Joe wouldn't like that...) business away from Diamond's Direct Market Book Distribution and begin it's new business relationship with the HACHETTE BOOK GROUP, (Hachette's news website announced the deal this morning) ending the speculation of industry observers of Marvel making their move away from the Geppi empire, despite the fact that Marvel will continue to run their monthly comics through Diamond for the foreseeable future ( just in case, y'know... Heroes World an all...) M.U. hopes to up their sales figures in one of the increasingly important markets for comic sales in North America--- the TRADE Market (hey, Joe caught on.).

Boondocks: 3rd Times The Charm

2010-04-09T06:31:00.005-04:00

A few days ago, my man Samax over at GHETTOMANGA.COM had gotten the scoop on a leaked trailer offering a sneak peek at what will be Aaron McGruder's 3rd and final season of The BOONDOCKS on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim. After checking it out myself, I will definitely find time on MAY 2nd to begin watching the final episodes! (Besides, the music used for the trailer, Exhibit C from JAY ELECTRONICA was a little too catchy to dismiss!) Enjoy!

THE BIG BUZZ: The Hot Mess Of YouTube

2010-04-08T05:43:00.005-04:00

WARNING: Brace yourself, cuz this kid's mouth is DANGEROUS!

Welcome back to another episode of the Planet, and believe me, this particular post is, without a doubt, the most irreverent, hilarious, and outrageous episodes the Planet has yet done. YOUTUBE recently celebrated its 10th year of ruling the online video community, firmly establishing itself as the next evolution of what MTV attempted to do for music video back in the 80's. Of course, when it comes to 'Getting your 15 minutes', YouTube is bloated with people from all walks of life looking to share their opinions, rants, etc., in an attempt to find the broadest audience possible. From singing to personal video diaries, the clips can range from decent to the cure for insomnia.

And then there's this kid. Who is he? Why, IT'SKINGSLEYBITCH!
(Yes, you say it as all one word, kinda like A Tribe Called Quest or A Pimp Named Slickback)

Now, PLANET GRIFFIN may rant/rave about certain aspects of pop culture, but the overly flamboyant It'sKingsley destroys them! His foulmouth observations on everything from Ke$ha to his fears on birds to Lady Ga Ga has begun generating a lot of hype, not only on YouTube, but the Hollywood circle as well! It'sKingsleyBitch's video uploads (the recently uploaded Things I Hate video has already generated almost a half million hits and growing) have created a growing fanbase like you wouldn't believe; with his networking status has tripled in a few weeks time from fans tuning in regularly to find out who, or what, he's going to bash next!

It'sKingsleyBitch is definitely a cure for the boring video diaries that bloat the vid channel, and ultimately more entertaining (check out his off the cuff remark linking a Lady Ga Ga video to his response to PETA advocates in BIRDS--- hilarious!). This is PLANET GRIFFIN and THE BIG BUZZ!

Hard Time: John Aston Strikes Again With RAGE Sequel

2010-04-03T22:07:00.006-04:00

PLANET GRIFFIN returns on this EASTER Holiday season, not to promote good tidings and cute and fuzzy bunnies, but pure, unadulterated RAGE... JOHN ASTON, that NEXT 100 lean, mean, crime-writing machine, has spit out the long awaited sequel to RACHEL RAGE: HEARTLAND over at OLDETOWNECOMIX.COM (Copies of the bestselling OGN are still being sold on his site, so hurry). The new tale, SHORT TIME WOMAN, continues the grindhouse saga of a Revenge-driven belle dispensing her now infamous brand of 'Southern Hostility' upon the corrupt system that dominates the 70's southlands.

For those of you who haven't followed up on this multiple award winning webcomic, here's the jive: Since the death of her favorite guardian, POPPA SOL, Rachel has spent much of her troubled growing years seeking revenge against the man she held most responsible--- the pitch black evil SHERIFF STEWART. As Rachel set out upon her blood soaked mission, she learns that the good sheriff is actually her REAL father (take THAT, Luke!), which severely complicates things, yet does not deter her from finding out the answers she wants to know. After blazing a trail (literally!) through the Heartlands, she begins to suspect that the connection between her father and her surrogate runs much deeper than anyone ever realized! Upon learning how the puzzle pieces fit (via a trigger word: Rage), Rachel is captured and sentenced to hard labor, where her fate remained in question. Until now.

The sequel picks up right where the OGN leaves off, with Sheriff Stewart standing trial for his earlier roles as drug trafficker and unrepentant bastard... Beating the rap, the 'lawman' almost immediately begins plotting against the wildcat daughter that caused all the trouble to begin with!

Upon reading the first chapter, it's already a given that writer/creator John Aston has lost none of his bite as the first scenes quickly pull you into the story, whether you've read the OGN or not. John's cinematic panel structure (complete with 'new' theater curtains), returns to great effect as you feel as through John pulled frames from an actual blaxploitation film to tell the tale. Another dimension to STW is that it carries you into another genre of the exploitation era. Where HEARTLAND told you Rachel's tale from the standpoint of a vintage revenge flick, SHORT TIME WOMAN begins the Women-In-Prison era (highlighted by such classics as THE BIG BIRD CAGE and WOMEN IN CHAINS, starring Blaxploitation legend, PAM GRIER).

With that in mind, you can imagine what lurid surprises John's got in store for Rachel next! Oh yeah, keep your eyes peeled, as John plans to release another compilation of short stories (it already went to press as of this writing) in print format just in time for the summer... It even includes a series of pin-ups from up and coming creators such as SAMAX from GHETTOMANGA.COM, JAY POTTS from THE WORLD OF HURT, and yours truly, THE INFAMOUS RODBUDDAH!

HAPPY EASTER from PLANET GRIFFIN!

THE BIG BUZZ: Retro Machina Comeback

2010-03-30T05:07:00.004-04:00

Maaaaaaann... As a child of the 70's, I remember when THE SHOGUN WARRIORS used to be one of the coolest toys around! Thinking back on it now, I STILL say the concept ROCKS! And if the finished product turns out to be half of what the pre-visual effects already suggests, then in late 2011, you will think GAIKING and the SHOGUN WARRIORS FILM TRILOGY rocks too!

In Memorium: Dick Giordano 1932-2010

2010-03-28T09:15:00.008-04:00

PLANET GRIFFIN, that pirate blogcast you keep firmly on your bookmarks tool, comes to you a little heavy on this not-so-easy-like-Sunday-morning. At 77 years young, legendary comics frontman DICK GIORDANO has passed away... Beginning as a penciller/inker for Charleston Comics back in the early 50's to its Editor-in-Chief in 1965, he would later move over to DC Comics as an inker (but not before opening the industry doors for future legends Jim Aparo and Dennis O'Neil.)

Giordano would be most notable for engineering the original 'crossover blockbusters' like SUPERMAN VS. SPIDER MAN and SUPERMAN VS. MUHAMMAD ALI as well as the GREEN LANTERN/GREEN ARROW with the great NEAL ADAMS. It was Giordano's skill at crossover events led him to usher in a little known DC Event called 'THE CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS' ( Quite frankly, the ONLY large scale crossover event with juice that Marvel's been trying to recreate for themselves for 20 years...) , as well as famously using the last of his 'pull' with the closing of Charleston Comics, to purchase a little story involving Charleston characters for DC, firmly entrenching them forever into the first page of comics history...

... The Charleston Comics story was known as WATCHMEN.

A tough and shrewd businessman, Giordano truly set the benchmark in comics. (Look, this guy rejected JIM LEE starting out, yet stuck with him to continue developing a style that would eventually become the most recognized and imitated in the industry--- you gotta hand it to him)

Mr. GIORDANO, PLANET GRIFFIN definitely salutes you.

The Vintage Classic That Never Existed

2010-03-25T11:46:00.007-04:00

Dedicated to my Grindhouse Goodfellas out there, here's a little diddy that's been around awhile and well worth rediscovering again... Quoted as 'GRINDHOUSE meets SPINAL TAP', the good folks over at IDW presents Stephen Romano's SHOCK FESTIVAL, a hardcover 356 page pictorial ode to the grindhouse era and it's alternate B-movie universe of sleazy producers, heinous directors, and 'do-it-all' actors and actresses struggling to make it into the upper echelons of the Hollywood inner circle... The byline on the book's cover guarantees it's readers of 101 exploitation movies that you've NEVER seen. Trust me, you haven't, and I don't care how much of a movie enthusiast you claim to be... And that's part of the beauty of this book... As well as the gag.

The brainchild of TIM BRADSTREET, THOMAS JANE, and STEPHEN ROMANO, the group took 2 years in recreating an era of the 70's and 80's that NEVER EXISTED, yet once you begin reading it (complete with theatrical posters, italian lobby cards, prose novel covers, soundtracks, and pics), you'll actually catch yourself thinking 'these events ACTUALLY took place'! You can almost smell the lurid backalleys, reel in disgust at some of the tactics used to make these films happen, and feel for those people who thrived and suffered for their art.

"We wanted to do a book that was a complete fabrication, but remain completely true to the spirit of these films we love," says creator Stephen Romano. "Basically what you are looking at is a sort of "historical novel" that uses the period and the art styles of movie posters to tell a compelling story. That was the challenge of SHOCK FESTIVAL. It's an epic tale disgusted as a garish, over-the-top work of "psychotronic" film journalism, guaranteed to stun the most jaded people out there."

SHOCK FESTIVAL 'recounts' 20 years of exploitive filmmaking that's as shocking as it is fun (look for THOMAS JANE in the book as the wild, B-movie tough guy, Elliot Swan, as well as art by Bradstreet, Dave Hartman, Michael Broom, and 'surprises' that may catch you offguard as their styles are so radically different here.). The full gamut is run here: The greatness of Blaxploitation sensations SASSY BLACK ( 'the other Pam Grier') and LEON CURVE ('Shaft's other revenge'), the super producer of the era ROC BENSON, psycho slasher flicks, sci-fi obscurities, monster movies, and vintage exploitation classics of all genres, all highlighted with over 600+ posters designed by Romano, Bradstreet, and crew. This book pulls NO punches and is SO worthy on any movie lovers book shelf!

JOEL SILVER used parts of this book (as well as the thematic of The BLAIR WITCH PROJECT) to co-produce THE HILLS RUN RED, of a film crew in search of film footage that's been missing for over 20 years; supposedly billed as 'the scariest footage anyone could ever see'... SHOCK FESTIVAL, already a hit on the film circuit as a 3 disc DVD compilation, I personally can't wait to see what RAW ENTERTAINMENT and IDW cooks up next in this genre!

A Word To The New Creator Pt.1

2010-03-16T00:43:00.006-04:00

Back in orbit once again, PLANET GRIFFIN returns to broadcast depth to convert and subvert the underground like Tyler Durden's Project Mayhem! I am your host, the Infamous RodBuddah, sending greetings to the newest additions, NEXT 100 and more, to the ever-increasing traffic of the Planet--- WELCOME ABOARD!

Yes, it's widely known by now that I'm an independent creator, just like many of you who visit the site. Now, while I've ranted on the mainstream zeitgeist, I'm not against it... I merely stress that BOTH mainstream and underground are necessary to continue the various forms of media that exist. What kills me are the corporations that wish to see the underground come to an end, since those very corporations once started just like we did... The starving artist earning a seat at the dinner table, so to speak.

To those of you indies out there looking to find your way, it never hurts to keep certain things in mind. There are many lists and reminders out there right now, so the Planet shall flip a version for the new underground creators coming up. It inspires me to push harder, so lets begin...

To Be, Or Not To Be- Let's be bottom line honest about this up front: As a creator (whether it be artist or writer, for example), know now that if you're expecting to get into this business and start making cash right out the gate: Forget it... The money will come later, but you've got to work to earn the shot first. Business school, nursing school, or even a Nail Academy will give you a better chance at a bigger payday than to run with the Starving Artists... Which brings up something else...

Who's Got Game?- No matter how good you think you are, there will always be someone with better game out there, so keep your ego in check so as not to stand in the way of your own growth. Admit to yourself that you're not perfect, and that you can't fix your flaws without first realizing that they exist. I've seen many artists out there who never grow beyond their own borders simply because they never got out of their own way...

Reverse Engineering- 'Genre is nothing but formula'--- whether it's comics, novels, video games, movies, music, etc.--- break down the elements of what you like, what you don't like, why, and then redesign them. Study the mechanics, aesthetics, and trends--- and then go the other way... Take an idea, simplify it, and then strip it down to it's core element. The stronger the element, the more you can add to it... An essential tool in your arsenal. Seriously.

The Happy Accident- Know now that fear, failure, and fear of failure are common--- which means your studio or 'lab' should be the last place to deal with such common things. True failure is being afraid to even begin. ( For example, in designing a page, I used to layout the page with a blue pencil, then tighten it up with a pencil, then go to the ink phase... By the time I finished, I had drawn the page 3 times! Therefore, I began to rough the page with the blue pencil and tighten it with the inks, skipping the 2nd step!)
I used to be terrified of such things, until a friend said to me "Only bad artists are careful"... And he's absolutely right! Experiment and practice your craft without fear and watch your style progress.

Be Passionate About What You Do- Now, if you can't be excited about what you've done, how can you expect other people to be excited about it? You like to write and draw bad asses? You should sell the project like one... Learn to able to sell yourself as well as what you do, since being an independent hinges on your ability to market your brand. ( Dave Sim wrote and fully illustrated 300 issues of CEREBUS without missing a beat, and successfully marketed it without any corporate backing of any kind--- That's Bad Ass!) Be passionate about what you do, because if you can't, this field is not for you. More importantly, how can have any kind of motivation if you have no love for it? ( Yes, I sound like a broken record, but this one is paramount if you wish to embark upon whatever it is you want to do. Seriously. )

You Can Take It- I remember when I used to go to portfolio reviews and listen to Pro's tear apart my work piece by piece. What got my attention was that they gave me NO useful information as to how to correct the problem. (One professional in particular actually told me that I should spend more time looking over his work and learn how to draw--- the PLANET banner art above is the one that prompted that statement. ) Some artists do that, tell you how bad or lacking your work is and give you no steps on how to fix it; like they're afraid you will one day take their job. ( Believe me, every species can sense their own extinction, and the bad artist is one of them) Again, you can't fix a problem until you can identify what the problem is... Of course, critical feedback, especially when it's right, is a hard pill to swallow, so I suggest you learn how to toughen your throat and cowboy up. Useful and indispensable information, I don't care how harsh the message, is priceless to aid you in your efforts.
When used correctly, you have no idea how much of a confidence booster that can be.

So far, so good... Stay tuned to PLANET GRIFFIN for more on this... I've gotta get back to the pages, man!

Special thanks to Myron Macklin, Edmund McMillen, and Dave Sim for their fantastic insights which inspired me greatly!

THE BIG BUZZ WEEKEND EDITION: The BRINK Of Greatness?

2010-03-14T09:06:00.007-04:00

This is the PLANET GRIFFIN WEEKEND EDITION of THE BIG BUZZ, that moment in time where the pirate blogcast focuses on what's soon-to-be-new-to-the-block and whether or not it'll blow you out of shoes and socks! From the demented minds of SPLASH DAMAGE in conjunction with BETHESDA SOFTWORKS comes BRINK, a maddening class based, first person shooter that's quickly being touted as the 'genre-breaker and game changer of the industry'... A title utilizing the latest version of the SMART program (Smooth Movement Across Random Terrain--- the first version appeared in a PS2 series known as Syphon Filter), the London based Splash Damage crew boldly claims to deliver a 'run & gun' that flows as smoothly as the trailer displayed above... Now you can understand why the buzz on this is so HUGE!

BRINK opens with the Ark, a self sustaining habitat designed to comfortably house 5,000, now forced to sustain 50,000 in light of a massive ecological collapse... After two decades of social unrest, Ark society now stands on the brink of all out civil war... That's where you come in.

The heavy influences involved, from the modern art style known as Hyperrealism to Parkour to the overall theme of 'arcology' ( a term coined by H.G. Wells used to describe self sufficient mega structures used to house people in the future), are hyped to full effect as Splash Damage readies BRINK for its grand unveiling this fall. If this title can truly capture the badassery of the trailer, then we could very well be witnessing the brink of greatness. This is THE BIG BUZZ.

Time's Up?

2010-03-11T12:12:00.004-05:00

In my humble opinion, 24 was one of those shows that just clicked with me. The first TV series of it's kind to successfully recreate the 'real time' format first pioneered by Alfred Hitchcock (ROPE), and though several attempts have been made over the years (the last was Johnny Depp's NICK OF TIME), none has ever captured the raw suspense that 24 achieved...

... And now, it may well be over, as FOX execs announce that Jack Bauer may be facing his last day with Season 8. Judging from the spiraling plotline as of late, I have to agree. As a 24 enthusiast (I have the entire run of the show in a collection I refer to as 'The Seven Bad Days Of Jack Bauer'), even I realize that the shows time has come... Which says alot about most media that keeps hanging on in the face of doom (i.e., Idol). FOX does mention a feature film and IDW is prepping a possible comic series.

Not to worry, Jack. You're not forgotten.
Time's up, that's all.

In Memoriam: Another Lost Boy

2010-03-10T11:04:00.007-05:00

From the L.A. News wire, It's reported that COREY HAIM, once 80's heartthrob from such films as LUCAS, CRANK 2: HIGH VOLTAGE (the mulleted sleazoid wearing the 'Nice Juggs' T-Shirt), and best known as the young vampire slayer in THE LOST BOYS, died at 2:15 this morning from apparent drug overdose. He was 38.

THE BIG BUZZ WEEKEND EDITION: The Bloody, Beautiful Return Of The North Star

2010-03-05T10:06:00.005-05:00

Another round of THE BIG BUZZ WEEKEND EDITION continues! KOEI TECMO (Man, I still remember the days of electronic handheld football from them... Don't you?) released a statement today confirming the soon-to-be-released FIST OF THE NORTHSTAR to European X-Box and PS3 consoles, with an as-yet-to-be-announced release date here in the states. The Dynasty Warrior's meets Streets of Rage format style game from OMEGA FORCE is quickly shaping up to be the hottest game since the GOD OF WAR trilogy! The sheer violence of this classic one superhuman versus one hundred tale is excitement enough if Koei games gets it right.

Of course, to the uninitiated, this game is the most recent addition to a manga franchise born way back in 1983 by BURONSON and TETSUO HARA--- and after 2 animated TV series, 4 feature films (including the 1995 American B-movie adaptation starring GARY DANIELS), and a revamped Japanese OVA, it's safe to say that the series will be around long enough to assure that you'll have time to get acquainted... The story goes a little something like this:

It happened in 199x (don't you love those ambiguous dates?)... The Post Apocalyptic Earth to come became overrun by psychopathic gangs and utter misery (The Road Warrior playing the backdrop here). Out of the wasteland comes KENSHIRO, a stranger bearing seven scars and master of an assassins' art known as Hokuto Shinken, or 'Divine Fist of the North Star', in which a single blow can make a man explode. His quest to confront RAOH, the master of Nanto Seiken, or 'Sacred Fist of the South Star', whose brutal iron fist reign over the gangs becomes complicated when former students of both schools get in the way of his journey, as well as the innocent lives he's sworn to protect caught in between.

As a gamer, I can't wait to experience the possibility of watching Ken engulf his combatants with a hundred punches and calmly walking away, saying 'You're already dead.', just before the entire gang explodes in individual gouts of blood--- I know, I know... It sounds far more bloodthirsty than it needs to be, right? Kratos settled that argument years ago on the PS2, so with the high profile release of this title, it should leave no room for question on what violence and old school justice is really about! This is PLANET GRIFFIN and THE BIG BUZZ WEEKEND EDITION.

THE BIG BUZZ WEEKEND EDITION: Emancipation Assassination

2010-03-05T08:41:00.004-05:00

PLANET GRIFFIN returns in time for THE BIG BUZZ: WEEKEND EDITION! It seems a little weird to come across this item after a NEXT 100 entry featuring the Great Emancipator as a hater of werewolves, because apparently, he detests bloodsuckers as well!

ABRAHAM LINCOLN: VAMPIRE HUNTER is the latest book published tuesday under Grand Central Publishing, by Revisionist writer SETH GRAHAME-SMITH, who introduced the world to the best selling (and highly unexpected) PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES! (A title, by the way, which has LIONSGATE and NATALIE PORTMAN'S name all over it in Hollywood)
The new book 'reimagines' the former U.S. President as an axe-welding vampire assassin whose ascension to the oval office has not slacked his vow of revenge against the undead legions after witnessing his mother's murder as a young boy. The mix of horror-adventure dropped within the context of real history made for an irresistible combination to the writer and publisher, so much so that they produced an in-house trailer to promote the upcoming release.

Needless to say, the results were sensational... Especially to the likes of Tim Burton and Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted, Nightwatch), who are collaborating again to bring Historical horror to the big screen. If it turns out half as badass as the in-house trailer, I'll definitely be there to buy the ticket and take the ride! This is PLANET GRIFFIN and THE BIG BUZZ WEEKEND EDITION!

NEXT 100: Keeping The Undead Faith, The Wild World of Stephen Lindsay

2010-03-04T03:33:00.012-05:00

PLANET GRIFFIN continues it's orbit through Pop Culture time and space--- and much like a blue police box, you never know where we'll turn up. Today, we materialize with new NEXT 100--- that listing of next level indie talent who's work will define future pop culture--- and introduce the smashgenre adventures of STEPHEN LINDSAY.

Since first appearing on the comics scene back in 2007, Writer-creator Stephen Lindsay dreamed of a zombie-plague ravaged world where the Son of Man would one day return to that world and level it! Armed with a big stick (or whatever happened to be lying around), a bizarre menagerie of characters, and Stephen's off-kilter sense of comic writing, the horror-action-smashmouth comedy formula would go on to prove that indie comic readers loved the fact that JESUS HATES ZOMBIES--- in a BIG way!

Publishing his first project under the ALTERNA COMICS banner, Stephen has succeeded in his indie venture IN SPITE OF the industry downturn--- "The industry seems to always be in a state of panic..." Stephen says. "Panic over sales. Panic over the internet. Panic over digital vs. print comics, and Panic over increasing prices. But what most people fail to see is that comic readers love comics! And with Hollywood snapping up property after property, exposure to comics has never been higher! So for all of the panicking, things are looking pretty good..."

Stephan also adds, "Independents have also never been stronger, and that owes all of its thanks to the internet. Anyone can now create a comic and put it out there for the world to see! Granted, not all of them are good. In fact, the vast majority are pretty bad... but that's not the point! The point is that Indies, if they're willing to do the leg work of constant promotions, really have a vehicle with which to showcase their work!"

Volumes 1 and 2 of his apocryphal comedy has already sold out, with Volume 3 already quickly following suite (and that's even before the soon-to-be-released Volume 4 OGN in a few months). JHZ has also spawned a spin-off within its pages, the runaway hit LINCOLN HATES WEREWOLVES ( from the 3 part mini-series, YEA, THOU I WALK, featuring Lincoln and Jesus saddled up on a rather familiar Dodge Charger--- and perhaps my personal favorite). One secret to Stephens' success lies in his tireless promotion of the brand, exporting the 'Holy Roller Zombie Killer' into the French and Euro-markets, where the books are selling into reprints, making the title more in demand now than ever! Such marketing savvy makes JHZ one of the most successful underground titles that you may not have heard of--- yet.

Stephan has other projects currently in progress, and believe me, the future of indie comics will be a bright, completely outrageous, and one well worth supporting! Next time you're on Facebook, look him up for new product and tell'em PLANET GRIFFIN sent ya!

PLANET GRIFFIN is proud to welcome STEPHAN LINDSAY as a member of THE NEXT 100!

The Big Black Eye Pt. 2

2010-03-02T00:56:00.007-05:00

Yes, PLANET GRIFFIN boldly goes where some blogs won't... dares to claim certain things that certain creators don't... PLANET GRIFFINPLANET GRIFFIN believes in giving something back to the innovators that gave birth to the PLANET in the FIRST place, so therefore I must be responsible in producing NEXT LEVEL INNOVATION and not rub shit back in their face. Welcome to another special edition of The BIG BUZZ, today known as THE BIG BLACK EYE.

Now, everybody and their grandmother's know of the scandal surrounding NICK SIMMONS and INCARNATE... (The evidence and extent of his scavenging from well known manga titles can be seen here) The firestorm blazing through the Radical Publishing Offices right now is pretty harsh, as Manga fans across the country scream bloody foul against the son of former KISS frontman, GENE SIMMONS. Today, through a representative, Nick released a statement in response to the allegations:

“Like most artists I am inspired by work I admire. There are certain similarities between some of my work and the work of others. This was simply meant as an homage to artists I respect, and I definitely want to apologize to any Manga fans or fellow Manga artists who feel I went too far. My inspirations reflect the fact that certain fundamental imagery is common to all Manga. This is the nature of the medium.

“I am a big fan of Bleach, as well as other Manga titles. And I am certainly sorry if anyone was offended or upset by what they perceive to be the similarity between my work and the work of artists that I admire and who inspire me.”

Meanwhile, upon learning of this, Bleach creator TITE KUBO responded, "I'm more interested in the fact that Gene Simmons' son is a mangaka than whether he's plagiarizing me or not." (Not surprising in the least bit considering that Kubo has sold upwards of 50 million copies of his creation. His comment displays real class and humility in light of all this. Well, that and he can AFFORD to be amused at all this.) Of course, despite this, the Facebook manga fans that feel betrayed amid all this, are demanding a la massive petition a class action suite against Nick for what he's done. From the NY TIMES to CNNGo.com, I almost feel bad for the kid in all this, as his efforts to be recognized has practically turned him into a divine object of hatred overnight... Notice that I said 'almost'. Wait, let's try this again...

“Like most artists (CON artist), I am inspired by work I admire. There are certain similarities (yeah, in science, we call it 'mitosis') between some of my work and the work of others. This was simply meant as an homage to artists I respect, and I definitely want to apologize to any Manga fans or fellow Manga artists (tell that to some of the kids who's work you ripped from Deviant Art) who feel I went too far. My inspirations reflect the fact that certain fundamental imagery (dangerous choice of words here. You've got to learn how to construct an image first) is common to all Manga. This is the nature of the medium.

“I am a big fan of Bleach (We can tell in your overlays), as well as other Manga titles. And I am certainly sorry if anyone was offended or upset by what they perceive (it's here that he deflects blame and sets himself up as a victim... Remember kids, you've only made him out to be bad) to be the similarity between my work and the work of artists that I admire and who inspire me.” (Be glad, Nick, that rabid fans didn't kill the messenger)

Honestly, INCARNATE proves far too blatant on too many levels to be genuinely considered original. In his claims, it's bad enough as the artist to scavenge and overlay (or trace) with no sense of composition or layout and claim yourself as 'bad ass' ( as Nick claimed in his first Deviant Art Journal "If you steal any of my artwork, you will pay. In cash.")... It's even worse as the writer to lift entire segments of the dialogue to justify a story you hockneyed together after using daddy's name to get yourself an on-the-spot meeting with a publisher...

Radical Publishing, you're not off the hook in this, either. For a company boasting such a rich lineage within it's ranks, you definitely lost sight of editorial control, which means you took this kid at face value in light of his heavyweight father's 'business moxie', or you were too blinded by the possible Hollywood potential that the 'family name' brings with such a venture. ( Which is dangerous, because that could easily mislead people people into thinking that comics and hollywood are NOT mutually exclusive as some companies are anxious to tell you, as well as display a form of desperation on Radical's part to gain notoriety) Oh yeah, lets not forget another fact in this--- I've never heard of a comic company that has NO sense of comics history to the point where your FANS recognize the blatant rips almost faster than a company who has spent time with the material in it's production, not to... Sorry fellas, your quality control takes a shot in the Family Jewels on this one.

In light of this situation, the upshot of this is that companies will take more responsibility in the material they attach their studio name to... Unfortunately, this may also prove to be a setback to many unknowns who are trying to break in due to industry paranoia over '...possible derivative product...'

And we ALL know the industry doesn't want what it already produces, right?

The Big Black Eye

2010-02-27T11:57:00.003-05:00

"We at Radical Publishing Inc. and Radical Comics Inc. are quite concerned to hear the news surrounding Nick Simmons’s Incarnate comic book. We are taking this matter seriously and making efforts now to contact the publishers of the works in question in an effort to resolve this matter. We have halted further production and distribution of the Incarnate comic book and trade paperback until the matter is resolved to the satisfaction of all parties. Rest assured that Radical is taking swift action regarding this matter and will continue in its efforts to maintain the integrity and protect the intellectual property of artists throughout the world whose creative works are the bedrock of our company and the comic book industry."

Now this is a damn shame.

Welcome back to the PLANET GRIFFIN WEEKEND EDITION, and after seeing this, I don't know whether to hang my head or bust out laughing (Believe me, I've already done both after reading all of this, but hey...)

For those of you in the dark, the image above is a page from Radical Comics' latest series, INCARNATE, written and illustrated by NICK SIMMONS, son of legendary rocker GENE SIMMONS. The page is overlayed atop TITE KUBO's wildly popular BLEACH manga series from Japan. Now, clearly seeing where I'm going with this, the various communities; from Manga fansites to DeviantArt, are screaming foul at the very fact that Nick not only lifted panels directly from the Bleach creator, but translated dialogue as well!

After sifting through the blogsites like Robot6 and LiveJournal (where I lifted some of these images to illustrate what I'm talking about. Ha), I find it hilarious that he almost pulled it off! Radical loved Nick's pitch (or did they love the name attached to him? Hmmm), and they swooned over his designs , only to blow their tops when the fans revealed to the company that they had been hoodwinked. This is the kind of sad swiping that ultimately hurts ALL of us in the art community, no if's, and's, or but's about it.
In response to the damning evidence, Radical Publishing stopped production of Incarnate pending investigation of the 'accusations' of Nick plagiarizing Kubo's manga series, as well as other manga's like Hellsing, One Piece, and Vampire Hunter D... With Radical and A&E offering heavy promotional support of the series, you can imagine the big black eye the company has received in light of this. Don't get me wrong, 'homage swiping' has been around for decades, but not to the extent where you claim your talents directly off the backs of someone else's hard work... Sorry Nick, but your quick and easy path to the darkside has gotten you in seriously hot water, and now you've got to pay the full price of admission on this one.

Meanwhile, the underground continues to grind on.

The Mystery Of John Twelve Hawks

2010-02-25T07:39:00.010-05:00

Back in 2005, a mysterious writer known only as delivered a dystopian sci-fi tale centered around a special group of dreamtime travellers and the covert guards who protect them... The book was titled, simply, JOHN TWELVE HAWKSTHE TRAVELER, and became a huge cult hit, especially to rabid Matrix fans seeking the latest, unexplored realm of sci-fi/fantasy.

In fact, the Fourth Realm Trilogy is what the writer planned to give them.

In the series, there exists a group of rebels, known as Harlequins, who live 'off the grid'--- almost completely invisible from the ever watchful eye of 'Big Brother', now cranked up to 12 ( Of course, you don't know at this point whether to thank George Orwell or The Wachowski Brothers for this one)--- fighting desperately to break the reign of a multi-national mega corporation whose means of complete world control lie in a special breed of 'Traveler', a person who can travel the 'dream-time' realm and through their ability, possibly unlock the secrets of time and space.

Maya, among the last of the Harlequins, seeks out Gabriel, a newly formed traveler, to protect him at any and all costs. Gabriel is now a target and his own brother, Michael, is in the employ of the 'Machine' out to get him!

Along with THE DARK RIVER and it's newly newly released conclusion, THE GOLDEN CITY, Twelve Hawks' fan base of sci-fi fans in general and Matrix fans specifically would quickly establish him as a world class writer the world at large has yet to realize... And now that ALEX TSE (WATCHMEN) is adapting the Fourth Realm trilogy for the big screen, those same fans cheer for that very writer who may get his hard earned claims after all--- if only his fans knew who he actually was.

You see, no one knows who John Twelve Hawks is. The name is a pseudonym, the writer has never been seen live, the Vintage publishing offices claims that the writer communicates with them over an untraceable line using a voice scrambler, and book tours always winds up with stand-in representatives. By the writer's own admission, he truly lives 'off the grid'. As production gets under way, the natural speculation over Twelve Hawks' true identity is becoming as rabid as his book sales.

James Frey. Oprah Book Club Public Enemy #1

Heavyweight names like Stephen King, James Patterson, and Michael Chabon have been tossed around, but with the recent release from the New York Post, JAMES FREY, the controversial author of 'A Million Little Pieces' (the one Oprah famously praised, then viciously discredited as fraud) may be the reclusive writer... A Nom de Plume that Frey says "I will neither confirm nor deny that I am John Twelve Hawks, Pittacus Lore, or anyone else . . . I will say that I have done, and I am continuing to do, projects that will come out anonymously or with invented names on them." Frey's upcoming alien series, 'I Am Number Four' (due out in August) has just been optioned by Steven Spielberg and Michael Bay.

Now, the question begging to be asked in all of this is, Whether or not Frey is or isn't, why use pseudonyms in the first place? Surely, from a cautious man's point of view, a pseudonym would be beneficial after getting reamed by Oprah on live television, of course, but seeing as how Frey's got no less than NINE projects upcoming; ALL using fake names, how does this benefit the literary world? The fourth realm trilogy is a decent series (I've read them myself), but the need for such secrecy over being real under those circumstances never made much sense to me. Of course, what do I know? Check out the Fourth Realm trilogy and judge for yourself...

Stay tuned to the pirate blogspot that continues to keep your knees clean and your back straight.

Black Takes Bronze, Striking Gold

2010-02-25T06:46:00.005-05:00

PLANET GRIFFIN, still holding orbit over the pop culture stratosphere, rests its case concerning its claims over the return of cool ass retro, and bringing back the grand cliffhanging adventure of yesteryear!

I was stoked to see this one--- Columbia Pictures, in conjunction with Original films, has begun pre-production on the 'Superman of the Pulps', DOC SAVAGE, THE MAN OF BRONZE!

The iconic pulp character of the 30's and 40's has passed from nickel-back novel to popular radio show to the resurgence of the pulp novel format back in the late 90's (Doc was the primary inspiration for Siegel and Shuster when they made you believe a man could fly)... And now, the super scientist has fallen into the hands of another throwback--- Doc Director SHANE BLACK.

Black, the Mark Millar of film writers during the late 80's/early 90's; creator of his own iconic creations (Lethal Weapon, Long Kiss Goodnight, The Last Boy Scout, and Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang), boasts one of the largest collections of pulp fiction and antique detective novels in the country, says he's ecstatic over landing the job and being able to saddle up to another upcoming pulp film adaptation, THE GREEN HORNET (which is probably why Columbia wisely greenlit Savage in the first place). Seeing as how they've given Black free license over the project, I'm excited for the end result, knowing that this will mark the return of Shane Black with a vengeance!

Character Rhythm And The Great Villain

2010-02-19T20:44:00.004-05:00

"...Not everyone can create a great sound. I mean, everybody and their grandmother
has home recording studios in their homes, but they're not all out there making
Sergeant Pepper right now, are they..?"
-Rob Zombie

Back once again, the PLANET GRIFFIN WEEKEND EDITION swings back into orbit with a piece from the archives of yours truly, the Infamous RodBuddah. When it comes to creating a character, I don't view it with a specific actor/actress in mind, like, say, Bryan Hitch. While the idea of someone like SAMUEL JACKSON 'playing' the role of a character I create would be cool, I tend to consider the 'sound' of a character in order to create a visual. Let's use Jackson as an example:

In PULP FICTION, the character of Jules, portrayed by Jackson, is a highlight of the film. Instantly quotable courtesy of Tarantino's deft style of smashgenre writing, the dialogue has a sort of 'sing-song' rhythm to it, making the film something you can listen to without even watching it... You already know the characters and the scenes, therefore you can visualize it in your own mind. The 'rhythm' of the character can be as important as the character itself.

In the creation of something new, especially in the writing phase, I tend to find a rhythm in the storytelling in order to come up with a visual for the character. Now, I'm not saying, 'Go listen to PULP and imitate the dialogue'--- No, no, no... I'm saying that, as a creator, you essentially have to 'become an actor' yourself in order to flesh out your storytelling, and in effect, your character visuals as well. When I initially began writing my personal project, FIERCE CREATURES, I began to study 'dialogue rhythm' before I set out to create the character visuals... It was in finding that rhythm during the creation of the 'Great Villain' that I managed to create the piece above... Y'know, that 'bad guy that's hard to hate' motif.

Of course, not everyone can follow such a metaphor... Much like a musician creating a new sound, you've got to find that rhythm before you can carry a tune. The same can be applied here, from music to movies to books of all types... With that said, I say to all of you up and coming creator's out there: Let's take it to the stage and create our own 'Top 40'... Or rather, our 'NEXT 100' ...LOL... This is the PLANET GRIFFIN WEEKEND EDITION.

A New Orbit

2010-02-16T16:43:00.005-05:00

Once again, the pirate blog known as PLANET GRIFFIN has returned to broadcast depth to assault the senses of the good people who are indeed ready for future sights and sounds! To everyone else, I say it's okay--- sometimes it takes me awhile to wake up from a deep sleep into a new day too--- not to worry, we'll keep the breakfast hot till you get here!

To the newcomers of The PLANET, welcome aboard! I am your host and motivational speaker, THE INFAMOUS RODBUDDAH, forging through the underground channels in order to spread the word of THE NEW INDEPENDENT UNDERGROUND that stirs beneath the feet of the Mainstream-At-Large. I personally find it a shame that there is SO MUCH out there that the public is NOT getting a chance to see (nor would they, if all they know are 'The Big Two'). Again, I'm honored to have you onboard, so don't be afraid to chime in and speak your mind!

During the brief absence, I've been burning the candle at both ends, either solving technical problems and adding in new hardware, or trying to finish several projects at once and managing all the extra material. I just recently added in a new scanner, so I feel like a samurai recieving his first sword--- time for a test cut! The pic above is a little something to work out the kinks.

Alright folks, back to work!

The NEXT 100: Through The Looking Glass Of Elizabeth Raab

2010-02-12T11:23:00.009-05:00

How many of you out there got tired of looking at the same old post, awaiting the return of new PLANET material? Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the long awaited return of PLANET GRIFFIN--- I am your resident ranter and motivational speaker The Infamous RODBUDDAH, and, as promised, I told you I would return with NEW NEXT 100 for 2010!

For the uninitiated, THE NEXT 100 focuses on those indie talents who are on the rise; fast tracked to bring you new sights, sounds, and different ways of thinking outside of the same old things you may be used to. Today, we take a hard turn into the world of photograpghy and introduce (or re-introduce for those of you on the New York scene) the incredible visual eye of ELIZABETH RAAB.
Based out of Seattle, Elizabeth's work leans towards creative portraitures and automotive imagery. Her slates have graced publications here in the U.S. and Italy, which gained the attention of Ducati Motorcycles. Her style focuses on vivid color palettes and surreal backdrops that's quickly establishing her as one who doesn't shy away from getting 'the magic shot'.
Check out her pictorial site, WWW.ELIZABETHRAAB.COM, to see more, and definitely what's to come. Don't be surprised to see this talent popping up in print ads all over the place in the coming year! PLANET GRIFFIN is definitely proud to welcome this indie hard charger as a member of THE NEXT 100!

Mob Mentality

2010-01-13T02:38:00.010-05:00

Ah yes... The ever immortal gutmuncher known as the zombie film. Leave it to the international film community to show us how it's done. Riding the new wave of horror celluloid in France, LA HORDE (or The Horde in english) revolves around a small band of corrupt Paris cops, out for revenge against the gangsters who murders one of their own. It's not until the two factions square off in an abandoned building that the global zombie outbreak happens... Naturally, the survivors are in for a very bad night.

Directed by newcomer Yannick Dahan, this flick ups the ante in a big way, boasting the largest body count (no pun intended) ever on film and cranks the chaos factor way up, making a convincing argument that if the world were to come to an end, this is very well what it could look like! Debuting in France February 10th, American-based IFC has already picked up the film for US distribution. Judging from the early buzz, this is one outbreak I intend to get caught in!

Cool Compact Crime Noir

2010-01-13T01:09:00.011-05:00

PLANET GRIFFIN returns to broadcast depth with new pirate material for 2010! THE BANNEN WAY, a new webisode series by Mark Gantt and Jesse Warren, is making the rounds as one of the hottest indie series never to hit broadcast television! This slick neo-crime noir stars co-creator Gantt as Neal Bannen, a casanova con-artist and thief, who's plans to escape the crime time are overshadowed by an underworld who wishes to keep him in primetime! Caught between a crimeboss uncle (played by the smooth Robert Forrester) a detective father (the legendary Michael Ironside), squeezed into robbing a jewish gangster known as The Mensch (Michael Lerner) while, at the same time, avoiding a latin loan shark, a trio of female assassin's (probably the closest we'll come to a live action Danger Girl), and a hot-to-death grifter (Las Vegas' star Vanessa Marcil) who aids Bannen for reasons we're not yet privy to...

... Needless to say, whether Bannen makes it out alive or not, we're definitely gonna have fun finding out! The overall look of the show is a standout among web series shows (shot on the new RED digital camera- see movies like Jumper or District 9 to get an idea), drawing in heavyweight sponsors like Apple, Jaguar, and Ray-Ban. Sony, who recently purchased the series concept last year, highly supports the idea of having the hottest, uber-low budgeted film since Robert Rodriguez shot El Mariachi (not to mention the steady increase in their subsidiary website, CRACKLE)!

Here at PLANET GRIFFIN, the idea of 'Compact Crime Noir' is definitely the future of non-broadcast television... It's the bulk of overly expensive commercial television that's the real crime. But what do I know?! Judge it for yourself...

From Crackle: 1: The Criminal Lifestyle

NEXT 100 : Art Ninja's Moving Silently Among You

2010-01-11T02:23:00.010-05:00

The NEXT 100 has always been around in places you least expected, as evidenced in the early magazine promo's for the first DANGERDOOM album done by my work partner and fellow NEXT 100 alum, MYRON 'ART NINJA' MACKLIN. Check out his awesome design skills over at ART NINJA STUDIOS.COM ... In the meantime, there's always room for SPACE HO'S, Coast to Coast!

SIDEBAR And The NEXT 100

2010-01-11T01:12:00.013-05:00

Talk about giving LATE thanks. Recently, I got a chance to listen to one of my NEXT 100 brethren, JAY POTTS from the Online Hurt Locker known as THE WORLD OF HURT, giving an interview over at SIDEBAR (Check it out here). I was blown away by his mention of yours truly and PLANET GRIFFIN among one of the
'Original Motivators' of his web comic when he first began--- which in turn drew in everyone from WARREN ELLIS, DWAYNE McDUFFIE, and even AIN'T IT COOL NEWS (People who should've been up on Jay's work SOONER). Jay even makes it a point of highlighting another NEXT 100 alum, JOHN ASTON of RACHEL RAGE fame. (Who, by the way, has another RACHEL RAGE OGN coming REAL soon!)

For those of you who haven't met Jay, you should (when he finally drops the long awaited THRILLSEEKERS OGN, you'll wish you the signing line wasn't SO LONG to get your chance), for those of you who have slept on the website, time to wake that ass up (Click the banner, check the link), and for those of you who thought PLANET GRIFFIN was blowing smoke up your ass when THE NEXT 100 started as 'The Next Generation of Future Hotness in the world of Independant Creators', the time has come for you to FINALLY realize that the Infamous RodBuddah has taken to the mountaintop to spread The NEW INDY COMIC GOSPEL!

THE WORLD OF HURT, OLDE TOWNE COMIX, ART NINJA STUDIOS, GHETTOMANGA, ILL ART STUDIOS, ARIE MUNROE, VIVID PRODUCTIONS, and, of course, PLANET GRIFFIN, are only the beginning--- tune in for THE NEXT 100 additions in 2010!

The BIG BUZZ: Don't Call It A Comeback...

2010-01-01T23:29:00.010-05:00

The year: 2010
The badass pirate blogcast: PLANET GRIFFIN
To all my NEXT 100 brethren, I welcome you all into the Brave New World! To all my newcomers, I am your host, the Infamous RodBuddah, and tonight, we welcome back the PLANET GRIFFIN WEEKEND EDITION of THE BIG BUZZ--- and what a buzz it is!

Back in March of last year (sounds funny to think of 2009 as last year, don't it?), a CGI promo came out of Japan prompting the geek blog machine to speculate whether the possibility of a live action STARBLAZERS movie was in the works... Considering that it was posted on YouTube, a lot of people, while thinking it was the coolest version of the Space Cruiser Yamato they'd seen yet, wrote it off as another wishful thought (once you see the anime clips intercut with the CGI, you'd write it off too) ... I'll admit, when I first saw it, I lost my mind (from a geek perspective, of course), especially since I was a HUGE fan of the series back in 79' (the first mainstream exposure of anime in this country, outside of Speed Racer fo course)...

Well, imagine the surprise when it turns out that the CGI promo was actually an international teaser for the live action movie. SPACE CRUISER YAMATO makes its debut Christmas 2010! From the clip, it appears that movie will combine the original StarBlazers series (The Quest for Iscandar) with the more popular second season (The Comet Empire) --- Which is fine by me after seeing the incredible visuals. See for yourself:

The YouTube buzz has already begun, the viewer numbers have already doubled since last nights upload, which makes this come-from-nowhere film a nice surprise in the starting gate of 2010! I can take comfort in the knowledge that I'm not the only one having flashbacks of running home from the bus stop, tearing ass into the house by 4:30 just to see if the Yamato will fire the Wave Motion Gun by the end of the show. This is PLANET GRIFFIN and THE BIG BUZZ.

The New Year's Evolution

2009-12-30T23:04:00.010-05:00

a⋅chieve⋅ment

1. something accomplished, esp. by superior ability, special effort, great courage, etc.; a great or heroic deed: his remarkable achievements in art.

2. act of achieving; attainment or accomplishment: the achievement of one's object.

3. Heraldry. the full display of the armorial bearings of an individual or corporation.

Synonyms:
1. Achievement, exploit, feat are terms for a noteworthy act. Achievement connotes final accomplishment of something noteworthy, after much effort and often in spite of obstacles and discouragements: a scientific achievement. Exploit connotes boldness, bravery, and usually ingenuity: the famous exploit of an aviator. Feat connotes the performance of something difficult, generally demanding skill and strength: a feat of horsemanship. 2. fulfillment, realization.

What have you achieved today?

Take a look at the things you do everyday--- whether it's going to work, paying bills, cleaning house, raising kids, etc.--- events and situations that are almost automatic, depending on how well you stay on top of things. Now, considering that these 'automatic responsibilities' consume a large portion of your day and evening; it's fair to say that all of these things can be labeled as 'sustaining and maintaining', right? So, I ask you again--- What have you achieved today?

The daily grind of the world never ends, and lately, I've taken a close look at just how many people 'sustain and maintain', yet have little time, if any, to achieve. There's nothing worse than seeing someone with a skill or talent that goes to rot... Even worse still when they write off an exceptional skill or talent as nothing, do nothing, and THEN complain that nothing in life works for them... To those folks, I offer these words: Talent is doing easily what other people find difficult. Genius is doing easily what talent finds difficult. Idiocy exists when either side does nothing while seeking everything. Nothing of worth comes easy, nor is it achieved without sacrifice... Nonetheless, I listen to folks around me talking about what they do, or hope to do, or wish they could do if they had money or time, etc.--- this is a scenario we've ALL fallen prey to at some point or another.

Achievement, for the most part, can happen when you can begin AND complete something WITHIN the everyday chaos that is 'sustaining and maintaining'. Most people think when achievement is mentioned, it means obscene amounts of cash, and while it's nice to consider, the true objective should be fulfillment first and foremost. Obstacles will ALWAYS be there in some way, shape, or form... Again, I ask you: What have you achieved today?

As we prepare to leave this year behind and enter a new decade, I urge you to take this question with you. Add it to your New Year's Resolutions--- you know, those things you TALK about doing that you rarely fulfill?

What have you achieved today once you realize that tomorrow's NOT promised?

HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM PLANET GRIFFIN!

Taking It Back The Hard Way...

2009-12-27T04:25:00.009-05:00

Okay... Say you need a transplant---quickly--- and shortly after receiving such a lifesaver, you discover that you can't make the payment on it? Now, when the man comes around to collect on the debt, how would you react if you knew that he was coming NOT for the cash payment, but the transplant retrieval?! Better yet, what if you're the repo agent and you discover that it's time for YOUR debt to be settled?!

Yeah, that's what I thought.

JUDE LAW, FOREST WHITAKER, LIEV SCHREIBER, and THE RZA star in the upcoming sci-fi flick, REPO MEN... Out in April, but just the wake up call you need after the holidays, right?

MERRY CHRISTMAS From PLANET GRIFFIN

2009-12-24T00:27:00.003-05:00

PLANET GRIFFIN would like to wish ALL of my NEXT 100 folks out there a truly Blessed Christmas! ( The NOCTURNALS piece is up because I felt like looking at some Nocturnals before the holidays! Besides, I asked Santa for the deluxe hardcover... Lol) Be happy and thank GOD for getting you through a year that could've killed us at any time... I love you all... Haters, you too.

PLANET GRIFFIN shall return after this commercial break....

Sam Keeps It Poppin', Liam Gets It Kraken: Clash Of The Titans 2010

2009-12-23T04:42:00.005-05:00

I was 10 years old when the original 1981 feature starring Harry Hamlin came out. As a kid, I knew it couldn't get any better. Well, naturally, I was 10 years old, so who knew? Even I can't deny that this version looks like a winner, and the excitement is STILL there after almost 30 years! PLANET GRIFFIN will definitely be somewhere in the front row! You should be too!

Battle Chasing At The End Of The World (Sort Of...)

2009-12-21T12:51:00.016-05:00

PLANET GRIFFIN returns to broadcasting depth in the days before Christmas to bring you the last days of the world as the question of "Whatever happened to Joe Maduriera?" is finally answered (at least to the gaming community) with the emergence of DARKSIDERS, a destructive platformer from THQ that takes NO prisoners! Now, the comic world is very familiar with the young upstart who was once hailed as '... single-handedly ushering japanese anime into the mainstream conscience' during his brief stint in the Marvel bullpen; crafting the AGE OF APOCALYPSE multi-string storyline (and that was only AFTER he found his niche during his ghost pencilling for Jim Lee and X-MEN). Every young comic head, at that time, remembers the moment when 'Joe Mad' left Marvel for Image, and the creation of his blowout fantasy, BATTLE CHASERS... And then, at the top of his game (a multi-millionaire by the age of 22), Joe walked away from it all, turning to his first love- Video Games!

Well, fast forward... Joe DID return to Marvel to do a short run on THE ULTIMATES before disappearing again, busy working on a secret project under the watchful eye of game developer, THQ... Now, the secret's out--- and I'll be the first to admit, it's amazing what a little redemption can do. Here's the story so far:

The timeline is Apocalypse Now. Right now. Boiling seas, massive upheaval, and the demons and the angels slay. The Day of the Horsemen are due, and it seems that only WAR has arrived ahead of all the others. It quickly becomes apparent that the Horseman has been set up as the one who prematurely triggered The Biblical End and is now hunted by the titans of Heaven and Hell both. So runs the world away.

Viewing the in-play designs myself, the game looks incredible, with monstrous bosses so big, you may have to upgrade the size of your flatscreen just to take them all in! The raw brutality of the game is just that--- imagine catching a flying demon's head in your gauntlet-clad hand and simply squeezing, or pulling out a massive sword and hacking your foes into a sinewy paste--- let's just say that it never gets old! The overall visual of the game remain highly faithful to Joe Mad's storyboards and sketchwork; easily drawing comparisons to Joe's Battle Chasers series. Come January 5, the public at large will get a front row seat to the end of the world in style!

Remembering Randy And The Infamous No-Prize

2009-12-21T04:57:00.007-05:00

Heh. Here's a little story that must be told. In light of Marvel's merger with Disney becoming official on the first of the year, as well as Marvel's legal woes in the field of 'who owns what'; the companies latest strategy involves having the artists in the bullpen complete a list of what characters they have created during their employ with Marvel... To make matters even stranger, an old case has resurfaced to haunt them yet again. The case of Randy Schueller. If the name doesn't ring any bells, then his contribution would. You see, this guy is the original creator of the Black Spider-Man (which would later evolve into Venom).

What follows is Randy's statement, in his own words, taken from 2 years ago. PLANET GRIFFIN even found the original letter sent from Jim Shooter himself. Upon reading this, I found it to be funny as well as sad... It's funny because, despite how it sounds, Marvel can't necessarily be blamed for this now (Shooter would be fired years later, and even though he was gone, some of his 'practices' continued...), and sad that even today, Randy has no gripes, yet he continues to gripe about it. To those of you aspiring fans out there, let this serve as a gentle reminder to what many of my NEXT 100 Creators already know... Deals are made by handshake over lunch everyday, but they're enforced by iron-clad contracts... And despite the fact that this post is merely a small piece of history retold, the very fact that history repeats itself should never be underestimated. Ever.

Back in the early 80s, Marvel ran a competition for aspiring writers and artists. Being a life long Spidey fan with delusions of comic grandeur, I took a stab at a story idea. (You can almost feel the band-aids coming...)

I thought it would be cool if Spidey needed to upgrade his powers and his look, so I came up with this idea that Reed Richards had made a new costume for Spidey using the same unstable molecules that the FF costumes are made of. The unstable molecules would flow into Peter's pores and allow him to cling to walls better. I think my original idea was to increase his sticking power by 25% or something like that. (To give such a precise percentage like this, it translates to '5 hit points in damage to your Wizard of Moordoor'...)

For some lame reason, I had the Wasp involved since she was the resident fashion plate of the Marvel universe at the time. Remember when Jan would show up in every other issue of the Avengers sporting a cool new costume? (Who could forget? Perez was nice like that.) I loved when they did that! So to me it made sense to have her design the new spider suit when she was over at the Baxter Building for cocktails or something. (ooookaaaay...) Anyway, I saw the new suit as a stealth version of the original costume - jet black so he could blend in with the shadows. At best, all you could see of him was the blood red spider emblem, emblazoned on his chest. (Yeah, in my design the spider was red, not white. I also gave him underarm webbing like in the original Ditko design.)

Oh yeah, and I stole an idea from Iron Man and made his web shooters work using the same cybernetic technology that Tony Stark used to control his armor. (So basically, Marvel merely took it back for pennies) Peter just had to mentally imagine the kind of web line he wanted to shoot and the suit would do it for him. (Keep in mind, this was 25 years before Civil War and "Iron Spidey"!)( 25 years later, and most of us still don't care)

A few months after submitting the story I received a letter from Jim Shooter saying he liked the idea and wanted to buy it for $220. I was thrilled! But the best part - they offered me a chance to write the story. How cool is that?

I ended up submitting a second version and even had a follow-up phone call or two with Tom DeFalco to discuss the script. Wow! Me, on the phone with a real live Marvel editor. I still can't believe this happened!

In the end, the whole scripting thing just didn't work out for me - I don't remember the exact reasons. I submitted another version of the story, they didn't like it, I stopped sending in letters. The whole thing just kind of fell apart. Regardless, I had no regrets. (Keep reading...) As a true blue Spidey fan, this was a very cool moment in my life.

A year or so later, when Secret Wars came out and I saw my costume idea executed in a completely different way than I had envisioned it, I was simultaneously thrilled and saddened. (You got what they paid for.) And when the idea of the black costume caught on, I was even more thrilled. And then when VENOM was created I was...disturbed. (An analogy of a simple idea in corporate hands, but I digress...) I was never a fan of the costume-turned-villain idea. Give me the classic Ditko villains any day! Venom just never really seemed to work for me. But I digress...

Now, fast-forward to 2007. I see that the black costume (MY black costume, sort of) is making it's way to Spider-Man 3. Wow! I couldn't stand it anymore - I had to come out of the closet and tell my friends and coworkers about my contribution to this year's BIGGEST blockbuster. And I had all the documents to prove it even if Marvel never mentioned my name.

Since Marvel paid me for the story, I have no real gripe, but I do feel bad that they didn't give me any kind of acknowledgment in the comics. ( If you said it like this, you actually do.) You know, something like, "costume concept by Randy Schueller" or "Thanks to Randy Schueller for inspiration," or "Randy Schueller, you Spidey fan-boy stud, you rock!" But no, I got nothin'! (Imagine if you worked in the bullpen now...) That's my one disappointment in this whole story. (Honestly, there shouldn't be any disappointment at all... Randy got paid AND recieved the infamous Marvel No-Prize!)

I've written to Tom Defalco before, but I've gotten no response. (You were paid back in 1982 on a 'work-for-hire' issued by a man who would later get screwed over himself.) Maybe Marvel is afraid I'll sue them or something, (hmmm...) but that's not the case at all! (So why make one now, eh?) I don't want any money, (We're talking upwards of $750 million today) I don't want any legal rights to the Venom character. All I want is this: a mention in the letters column of Amazing Spider-Man recognizing me as the nameless fan who (WHO shall remain nameless) sparked the idea for the black suit which eventually led to the idea for Venom which eventually became the basis for this freakin' monster movie we call Spider-Man 3. That's all I want. (Good luck in your future litigation)

Thanks for letting me vent!
Randy Schueller

THE BIG BUZZ: The Seedy Side Of The Brush: SHINJUKU

2009-12-20T13:13:00.009-05:00

DARK HORSE plans to shake up the new year with the upcoming OGN, SHINJUKU, crafted by writer Christopher 'Mink' Morrison (from Tarantino's A BAND APART crew) and artist Yoshitaka Amano (isn't he a famous artist?)! Set for release in March 2010, the story takes place 10 years into the future as bounty hunter Daniel Legend tracks down his sister in the heart of the seedy neon underworld of Tokyo; falling headlong into the center of two underworlds at war--- one criminal, and one infernal. Hard Boiled Crime, Sorcery, and something completely different, SHINJUKU HC is definitely a title that'll stand tall upon my bookshelf! I mean, the work pretty much speaks for itself...
This title is the first in a series of original OGN's planned by Dark Horse Comics throughout 2010. The early buzz of the creative team's output for this title is extremely good; something Dark Horse promises as 'the beginning of visual and literary genius'... I can't wait to see if they're right! As far as the OGN aspect is concerned, I think Dark Horse is going for something more than mere serialization... But I'll let you be the judge...This is PLANET GRIFFIN and THE BIG BUZZ.

Trading Up: The Evolution Of A Brochure Pt. 2

2009-12-16T08:45:00.012-05:00

PLANET GRIFFIN returns to broadcast depth to take yet another look at the industry that is... Checking out the news with coffee in hand, I came across DC's recent announcement of releasing a series of Superhero OGN's in 2010--- what makes the announcement so special is Joe Quesada's reaction to it! Now, the PLANET has already spoken on this subject before, and let it be known now: I've got incredible respect for Joe, so I can see where he's coming from in terms of MARVEL business, (you'll see what I mean in a moment)... The following is Joe Q's recent interview over at CBR...

"People take the things I say and misread them and put words in my mouth. What I've said is that the graphic novel is not the best financial model with which to sell comic books. (Of course, this is true--- if your only strength is comics) I don't know if they've announced page counts on these OGNs or not, but let's say for the sake of argument that the page counts is the equivalent of five comic books. If they were to take Geoff Johns' five issues of "Batman" and sell them monthly, they would probably end up making a lot more money than putting it out as a hardcover. (Start doing better quality softcovers for cheaper, rather than cheaper quality hardcovers that charge exorbitant prices. Two words: Marvel Essentials) Personally, we've never seen that model work for us financially. That's all I'm saying. I'm not saying people shouldn't do OGNs. I'm just saying for us, at Marvel, (which is why DC will pull ahead in the near future--- remember that you heard that here--- here's a hint : A cartoon corporation versus A book/movie/music amalgamation) the math has never worked. If some people feel it works for them, then go with God."

"I'm just saying, I was asked a question about OGNs, and even from the financial standpoint of a commercial artist, if I'm looking for a way to maximize my time versus how much money I make versus how much exposure I get – an OGN doesn't make sense. (You can practically hear Doug Tenapel and Kyle Baker laughing out of their chairs--- as well as Japan, France, Spain, and the underground lair of Alan Moore---) Artistically, I may decide it's what I want to do in my heart of hearts. And that's okay. Go do an OGN. But if I'm looking at it from a pragmatic standpoint and from a career management standpoint – let's say it'll take me a year to do about six issues. I could do a year's worth of work and put it out as one graphic novel, and I'll be on the stands in perpetuity (if it's good), but promoted for really only one month. So my year's worth of work will give me one month of marketing around my name. And that'll boost my career for that month. The book will come out and sell to fewer people because I've had to put something like a $40 price point on it. (Note that the price point mentioned is almost becoming standard with most mainstream hardcovers right now) I can't put it out as serialized issues because nobody's going to care at that point. (We don't now, because most of us ARE waiting for the trade) Maybe after hardcover, I can put out a softcover for a little less money and make it affordable, but I'm still not capitalizing on it as I should. (That comment will come back to haunt him) But to me that's working backwards from a career management standpoint. I could take that year of my life and be on the stands for six months, being marketed for six months. Then I put out my trade paperback and get
marketed again. And then I can put out a deluxe hardcover to repurpose it again and so on and so forth. (One word: Watchmen) I think there's more bang for your buck if you go monthly at this point. (Tell that to Diamond's benchmark policy) And that's it. It doesn't mean people shouldn't do it. It just means that pragmatically, that's what makes more sense to me.
Pragmatic (adj): 1. of or relating to practical affairs 2. : concerned with the practical consequences of actions or beliefs.

And let's not forget, what if the OGN isn't all that good? Now you've spent a year of your life for even less bang as your book will come and go and be lost amongst the plethora of mediocre-to-horrible OGNs that have faded into the ether. We always look at the best case scenario, the occasional OGN written by someone like Neil Gaiman that sold boatloads, but we seem to overlook how he is the exception and by far not the rule. (Budding writers/creators, take strong note of that. Besides, didn't I say 'if your only strength is comics...?' ) If we could all sell books like Neil, the comics industry would be in a much different place."

Like I said, from that perspective, I can see where he's coming from... Which is not where WE are... That different place to come. Back to work.

Remembering The Classics: The HIRE

2009-12-16T07:36:00.005-05:00

I dig through my backcrates of movies like a DJ digs for a record of choice, and in my search, I came across a classic collection that you can't find at the local Redbox... BMW Presents THE HIRE, an incredibly cool web series originally conceived not only as a marketing pitch to promote BMW's new line of cars, but to hype the powerhouse filmmaking collective, PROPAGANDA FILMS. ( Remember when IMAGE formed back in the early 90's? Same thing)

The web film series also increased the visibility level of CLIVE OWEN to superstar status (Until he pulled that SHOOT'EM UP stunt)... Anyways, the series was narratively brilliant (telling a complete tale within 10 minutes better than most flicks running at 90 minutes), visually exciting (JOHN WOO, JOHN CARNAHAN, TONY SCOTT, WONG KAR WAI... End of discussion.), and perhaps one of the best uses of multimedia marketing I've seen in a minute... The success of the series spawned 2 comic series (DARK HORSE and DC), as well as it's full length counterpart, THE TRANSPORTER (Clive declined on the role that JASON STRATHAM was only too happy to accept). Ah yes, PLANET GRIFFIN remembers the classics. You should too.

THE BIG BUZZ: SLINGERS-Selling Sci-Fi Sizzle

2009-12-08T22:45:00.015-05:00

Okay folks, a few days ago during the PLANET GRIFFIN WEEKEND EDTION, I posted a Vimeo clip for a sci-fi show called SLINGERS, coming from a small UK production house known as Sleepy Dog. Slingers is a smashgenre of OCEAN'S 11, COWBOY BEBOP, FIREFLY, and M*A*S*H; making the buzz on this sci-fi property '... one of the hottest tickets since the arrival of Joss Whedon and J.J. Abrams!'

This show does not exist. Yet.

The video clip is actually a Sizzle Reel (A two minute pitch to network investors to build show potential. If successful, it moves into production) the production house scraped together using independent investments in hopes of taking it to the next level. So far, the interest has been well received in the U.K., but upon releasing the clip online, the America response is taking off faster than a runaway freight train! Writer/Creator Mike Sizemore explains the Slingers plot like this:

2263 A.D. After surviving mankind's first interplanetary war, humanity is now confined into an area of the universe known as Enclosed Space, seeing as how the way back to Earth is blocked off by an impassable barrier--- inadvertently created by mankind's efforts to defeat it's alien enemy. The title of the show derives from the ragtag crew of thieves flying an experimental spacecraft capable of 'slinging' itself to any point in space, making it (theoretically) the only craft able to return home. In reality, the crew utilizes the ship to pull off a series of high tech, high risk heists in an attempt to get payback on members within the post war hierarchy.
The De Facto leader of this group, former Spec Ops soldier DOMINIC 'DM' MONROE (played by the stoic SEAN PERTWEE), is determined to get home regardless of the outcome!

Enemies to make and Laws to break... So be it if it means saying goodbye to Enclosed Space!

Sizemore further emphasizes that the sci-fi elements are merely the trappings of the genre. The real story has more in common with the style and feel of classic heist movies and the heyday of Sinatra's Rat Pack, making for an exciting and visually stunning cocktail that easily puts this conceptual show above most of the 'pap' that passes for sci-fi! He's already written an overall story arc that, if successful, would run well into 3 seasons, allowing for full development of the characters, much like the already classic BATTLESTAR GALACTICA.

So far, the Sizzle Reel has won over critics and investors during the recent MIPCOM distributors show (the Comic Con for new show pitches to the networks), allowing enough buzz to move into Pre-production and filming of the Pilot. Depending on who picks up the show, the first season of Slingers may hit boob tube screens by Fall 2010 or Spring 2011. With the blogosphere already hailing it as 'the Next Big Thing', it now falls to the studios who may or may not give this show the shot it deserves... Which would suck, cuz' I personally think this project ROCKS!
This is PLANET GRIFFIN and THE BIG BUZZ!

Death From The Rooftops: Assassins' Creed Part 2

2009-12-07T13:21:00.003-05:00

PLANET GRIFFIN Presents the continuing tale of Assassins' Creed. Wow! You cannot miss this one!

The Dangerous Postman: Assassins' Creed Pt. 3

2009-12-07T12:54:00.004-05:00

Sometimes, in an effort to deliver a letter, you've gotta kill a whole lotta people! The plot DEFINITELY thickens here!

Thieves In Space And The Swinging 60's

2009-12-04T21:04:00.008-05:00

PLANET GRIFFIN WEEKEND EDITION asks the question:

If COWBOY BEBOP and OCEAN'S ELEVEN were to cross paths, what would it look like? Not since FIREFLY has space ever looked this cool!

Back In The Badlands: Banlieue 13-Ultimatum

2009-12-04T03:02:00.007-05:00

PLANET GRIFFIN, the badass pirate blogcast, returns with a sequel to smile about! Back in 2004, Luc Besson capitalized on the french parkour craze with BANLIEUE 13 (Banlieue being french for 'neighborhood'- retitled DISTRICT 13 for American audiences), and created a cult sensation for the straight-to-DVD market. Watching the likes of DAVID BELLE (one of the founders of the parkour sport) and CYRIL RAFFAELLI (a poor man's version of Jason Statham) jump cars, scale walls, and whip ass a la' Jackie Chan was a great change of pace to a genre beginning to run out of steam.

BANLIEUE 13: ULTIMATUM picks up 2 years after the events of the first film, the walled district (think ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK. Period) is still rife with violent drug cartels and killers. The local government, still looking for an excuse, is secretly instigating civil unrest behind the walls; looking to eradicate the notorious banlieue's once and for all... Which brings back elite police agent Damien (Cyril Raffaelli) and reformed vigilante Leito (David Belle) to save the 2 million denizens contained within.

Recently released theatrically to French screens, it will see American shores (VOD in January/Theaters in Feburary) in 2010 through MAGNET and the 6 Shooter Film Series.

The InHuman Distance

2009-12-01T11:19:00.005-05:00

As we approach the end of 2009, no other news story can even come close to the events that took place here in North Carolina less than a month ago...

... It revolved around 5 year old SHANIYA DAVIS.

The autopsy report stated the cause of death was asphyxiation--- it also states that the child was raped. Some reports state that the mother, Antoinette Nicole Davis (currently charged with human trafficking and child abuse involving prostitution), gave the child to Mario Andrette McNeill (first degree rape/murder/kidnapping) to settle up drug debts. This local story captured world attention (SHAQUILLE O'NEAL himself paid the bill for the funeral cost), and left no heart untouched... I assumed the worst was over.

I was wrong.

International News wire confirmed 3 days ago that a mother in Tokyo was arrested for selling her ONE YEAR OLD daughter to an unemployed 46yr. old man for sexual acts... Acts that she was present for, citing that "...the child was too small to be left alone..." The mother also claimed that she needed money--- "I was having difficulty with living costs". Police also discovered evidence of other pornographic images in the man's home, suggesting that the infant may not have been the first...

I cannot, and I mean CANNOT, fathom what motivates people to sink to such levels of depravity. As a parent, I'm terrifyingly aware that my children must face far more horrors, both subtle AND straightforward, than I did in my time. You know what's scarier than being afraid for the babies...?

...Being more afraid of what you're capable of when faced with such a situation... And while this may sound like some sociopathic rant, I'm absolutely convinced that there is not ONE parent out there who wouldn't agree. The days grow shorter, the times get harder, and the inhuman distance between sanity and madness is dangerously closer than you think... In this case, it's as simple a difference as looking into a child's eyes and seeing the potential of what could be, versus looking into the lifeless eyes of what could've been--- cut short by someone who couldn't realize their own.

So, to all you parents out there, I say knuckle yourselves up and stand strong as stone for your children, even as the world continues to chisel and chip away at you. Remember that the strength of the inhuman distance lies in our indifference and inaction. Lets teach our little ones how to widen the gap. Shaniya and the others would thank us for it.

Ten Minutes Into The Future

2009-12-01T02:18:00.010-05:00

PLANET GRIFFIN, the pirate blogsite where underground designs dwell, returns to broadcast depth as we enter that special time of the year where the holiday hits just keep on coming! While many dreamed gastric dreams of turkey and dismal retail sales, I spent my holiday caught between punching a timeclock and fulfilling dreams of another sort--- and the current results are fantastic! In an impromptu photo shoot, I couldn't help but offer up a peek into what PLANET GRIFFIN has planned for the new year... FIERCEWEAR (in it's prototype phase), for example, is a little something in anticipation of the release of the upcoming FIERCE CREATURES OGN... I swear, between the ART NINJA STUDIO and myself, the future is so bright, I'll wear my sunglasses at night! Nuff said for now... Gotta get back to work!
Special thanks to The Boriqua for the pics and convincing me that I shouldn't freeze up in front of the camera.

Tis' The Season For The Treason And Other Trifling Moments

2009-11-27T21:00:00.004-05:00

Hopefully everyone out there is having a wonderful Thanksgiving--- mine was spent working, but hey, can't have it all, can we? While I was out and about, I'll admit, I've never seen so many people buying turkey/peanut oil combo's in my life! (Deep-fried turkey moves like Blue Magic around here) Of course, my time leads into the wildest shopping day of the year--- the infamous BLACK FRIDAY! Even with the economy the way it is, that didn't stop the hundreds of people out there buying everything from ROCK BAND to ZHU ZHU PETS (the EBay Toy of the Year), laptops to flat screen TV's... Of course, desperation and excitement often go hand-in-hand on days like this.

For example, I happened to come across this one guy stealing 10 Rib Eye steaks at $18 bucks a pop, shoving them down his pants! His PANTS, mind you... As he shoves them in one after the other, he doesn't realize that the plastic wrap on the packs are tearing, causing the blood in the packs to run.

Here's where I come in.

I walk up on this guy just as he finishes the last pack, whipping around in a sudden mix of shock, fear, and embarrassment; saying, " Hey man... I'm just trying to feed my kids..." My reaction is more like, ' Gee, sounds like a great After-Thankgiving-Sampler, but I think your failure to include a maxi-pad in your larceny list is duly noted', as I point down to the HUGE blood stains running down the front of his pants. He yanked the hundred-eighty-odd bucks in steaks out of his Murder One Jeans and hauled ass as people stopped and stared.

Needless to say, it's a holiday... I just stood there and laughed. And now, so are you.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING from PLANET GRIFFIN... And after the bathroom break, it's back to work.

In The Race To Capitalize On Things Great And Small

2009-11-25T00:52:00.005-05:00

I find movie parallels interesting.

Y'know... SPEED and it's suspense counterpart, BLOWN AWAY... ARMAGEDDON and its dramatic counterpart, DEEP IMPACT... Those movies that didn't just capitalize on taking us for our hard earned entertainment dollar, they wanted to see which production house could get to the screen first to take our hard earned entertainment dollar! Here's the new examples for 2010:

FRANCIS LAWRENCE (Constantine) recently announced his development acquisition of IN THE SMALL, illustrator Michael Hagues' apocalyptic graphic novel of a world where humans--- and ONLY the humans--- have shrunk to 6 inches tall, leaving the rest of the world intact to scale. Mankind is now forced to contemplate its survival while also dealing with its new role at the bottom of the food chain. (Again, this is another example of indie works that should've recieved wider release) In an excerpt from the book, Hague sums up the full implications quite nicely:

"... The Blue Flash had reduced mankind to feeble insignificance--- a mere one-twelfth of its former size... Centuries of technological and mechanical advances were rendered useless...
There was no one to extinguish the fires... No one to tend to the injured... No one to restore order. The remnants of civilization were everywhere, but civilization as it was, was gone. Forever.
Many soon found what it was like to be at the bottom of the food chain. Many lost the will to live. But some, despite all the terrible hardships, were determined to find the strength needed to survive."

Now, it was originally announced that Lawrence would begin prep on the better known comic property, SERGEANT ROCK, but later changed his mind in favor of this one. Who knows what changed his mind..? Could be that he decided against SGT. ROCK being set in modern day Iraq, perhaps? Could be he's kicking himself over the implications of passing up the Star Trek reboot for The Omega Man remake (oh, I'm sorry--- I AM LEGEND)? Could be that uber-geek J.J. ABRAMS announced this project as his next development project only a few weeks prior...?Who knows? Maybe it's all just another Hollywood coincidence... Having said that, it might be pretty damn cool to find out! This is PLANET GRIFFIN.

Big In Japan: Matthew Reilly Manga?!

2009-11-23T02:29:00.008-05:00

Those of you who know me and the inner circle of PLANET GRIFFIN knows that I am a HUGE fan of writer MATTHEW REILLY, whom I can easily say his work is to action as JAMES ELLROY is to American Crime fiction... It's just that simple. (I still can't imagine why Hollywood hasn't begun following up on Reillys' book already, seeing as how two studios bought the rights to all of his books so far...) With the upcoming release of Matthew's latest book, FIVE GREATEST WARRIORS in January, I learned of the possibility of the re-releasing of the manga... That's right.

Originally released in 2004, this non-english Manga series follows the plot of its english counterpart faithfully, sparing no visual expense as far as the supercharged action and cliffhanger suspense is concerned--- no small feat realizing that the book is non-stop on all fronts! The manga offered many easterners an opportunity to see USMC Shane Schofield, callsign 'The Scarecrow', battling it out, Die Hard-style, against British SAS, French Black Ops, and killer whales, for an incredible secret buried miles below the ice!

The only thing that threw me off are the cover designs that look a little too pre-Macross style for my taste, but you can never judge a book by it's cover... If this project comes stateside, I'll definitely be onhand to snatch'em up! In the meantime, PLANET GRIFFIN offers the SCARECROW series the highest recommendation it can give! Don't sleep on it!

Catastrophic Beauty

2009-11-22T20:13:00.006-05:00

If major metropolises, like say New York or Tokyo, were hit with catastrophic rises in sea level due to global warming predictions, what would everyday life be like in its wake? Would people navigate the city streets in gondolas or fish from river banks in the heart of the city?

This is the portfolio idea that STUDIO LINDFORS, a New York architecture firm, recently realized. The stark reality of what could be if the current atmospheric predictions remain on track in this new series entitled AQUALTA. Definitely a crisis worth framing, don'tcha think?

MAD MAX: The New Face Of Road Rage After 30 years

2009-11-22T17:41:00.007-05:00

PLANET GRIFFIN WEEKEND EDITION takes in the trilogy that redefined Post Apocalypse--- GEORGE MILLER'S MAD MAX Trilogy! What makes this so special is that today marks the 30 year anniversary of the first film, as well as Miller's announcement of finally deciding on who will play the coveted role of Max Rockatansky in his long awaited sequel, MAD MAX: FURY ROAD...
British actor TOM HARDY, who recently finished BRONSON (a film that transformed presumed pretty boy Hardy into real life hardened criminal Charles Bronson; shocking the hell out of audiences everywhere). Needless to say, after the sad realization that Mel Gibson was too old to assume the role he made famous, as well as the surprising decision to pass on obvious choice SAM WORTHINGTON, Miller silenced all of his critics and made them sit up and take notice.
Production has now commenced on the new film with shooting prepped to begin at the start of 2010 with a 2011 release. Miller has also shared his plans on continuing the storyline left off from Beyond Thunderdome rather than reboot the series from scratch. The director stressed that this new film would be 'epic' in its scope and '... prove beyond all doubt that the Mad Max character will once again sit atop the heap of the action hero pantheon...' Also, Miller's veilled musings of 'big surprises' already have many a blogger wondering if Mel himself would make an appearance.
As a big fan of this classic 80's series, I'm really hoping that Miller can pull this one off. I'm already a little jaded at Hollywood's tirade of remakes and continuations of franchise pictures that simply don't work (unless you count JJ ABRAMS STAR TREK, which was a great exception), so for Miller to return to the franchise he made great in the 80's, I can only hope that he or Hollywood doesn't screw up this one for the sake of a quick profit... In other words, a PG13 rating just ain't gonna cut it. You know what to expect should this movie go megaton--- I'll have no problem cheering it on in a future review drinking coffee out of a Max Rockatansky mug.

This will be the new face of road rage in a future where seatbelts no longer exists. This is PLANET GRIFFIN WEEKEND EDTION.

THE BIG BUZZ: The Wild Life Of A Born Storyteller

2009-11-20T00:03:00.014-05:00

My grandfather was a Johnny Cash fan when I was a kid. My granddad used to say, "Whenever you want to listen to a born storyteller, you listen to the Man in Black". Once I heard it for myself, I understood that meant. Visual storytelling through sound was Johnny's forte that still stands to this day. For German artist REINHARD KLEIST, it was a no-brainer... One born storyteller telling the tale of the other.

JOHNNY CASH: I SEE A DARKNESS OGN, which has already won numerous international awards, including the Max Und Mortiz award (Germany's equivalent of the Eisner award here), has now arrived here in an english version available through ABRAMS COMICARTS, and features the life of Cash from childhood to the infamous concert held at Folsom Prison, which cemented his legacy and stands as the centerpiece of this book.

This book is a prime example of why I love the storytelling medium. Kleist uses the prison sequence as a parallel to the singer's own tribulations in life. From the hard partying to the drug-induced hazes between performances; the physical, chemical, and emotional walls built up around Cash's life was something the late singer struggled with his entire life. The intertwining of both sequences around the recount of Glen Sherley, an actual Folsom inmate who met Cash at that time, is pure genius. The monochrome black and white wash style is straight to the point in this one, creating style without being stylish or overly flashy... Just like the man himself.
PLANET GRIFFIN definitely concurs with the buzz surrounding this one. The biggest challenge is catching a copy when it hits the shelves. This is THE BIG BUZZ.

Nothing New Under Where The Sun Don't Shine... And That's Just Fine!

2009-11-17T11:44:00.014-05:00

The world of high concept style in regards to cosplay has never been a secret. Recently, one of its hottest trends is nothing new, but an old school fashion that's never gone out of style! Ero-cosplay (Erotic Costume Play for you latecomers) idol USHIJIMA recently shot displays of fundoshi (a traditional male underwear stretching back a few hundred years in Japan) for Sankaku Complex,
revealing a new sales trend for women (who traditionally are viewed wearing no bottoms in Japanese practice).

Now, the closest this trend has ever gotten in America is the thong, and even then, it's not for everyone! But here at PLANET GRIFFIN, you gotta admit, it's quite the sight to see!

UnEqualed: Edward Woodard RIP

2009-11-16T13:06:00.008-05:00

Wow... PLANET GRIFFIN remembers one of the baddest Brits since Michael Caine's GET CARTER, Thespian EDWARD WOODARD, who died today at the age of 79.

Starring in films like BREAKER MORANT and THE WICKER MAN, Woodard is more famously known to America as 'fixer' Robert McCall in the hit 80's show THE EQUALIZER (88 Episodes) and his hilarious return in Edgar Wright's HOT FUZZ. PLANET GRIFFIN salutes you!

THE BIG BUZZ: Ed Brubaker's Angel Of Death!

2009-11-15T00:31:00.006-05:00

PLANET GRIFFIN is back in orbit, bringing you the coolest in Alternative Pop Culture! Here's something I stumbled upon a few days ago... ED BRUBAKER, that mad writer of comic crime fiction (i.e., CRIMINAL), has been doing a little moonlighting in the film industry as of late. ZOE BELL ( UMA THURMAN'S stunt double in KILL BILL and the star of Quentin Tarantino's DEATH PROOF), LUCY LAWLESS (XENA), and TED RAIMI (Extra Extraordinaire and brother of SAM) have taken part in a webisode series called THE ANGEL OF DEATH, featuring Zoe as EVE, an assassin with no remorse, who learns how valuable that remorse can be after sustaining a knife to the head ( trust me folks, you definitely don't wanna miss THAT scene!), forcing her to remember ALL of her past kills!
Recently, the release of the DVD compilation of season one has caused a buzz among new viewers, hoping to find it on the web
( which, by the way, you can find the first 4 episodes via Youtube). After checking out myself, I agree that this flick ROCKS! Of course, I'm a geek of discriminating taste, so what do I know?! PLANET GRIFFIN will feature these episodes here, so stay tuned for Season Two, which is enviably coming! Check it out for yourself and see if this doesn't motivate some of you creators-in-training to get off your ass and CREATE something, cuz Brubaker damn sure did!

PLANET GRIFFIN WEEKEND EDITION: Assassins' Creed Film Series

2009-11-07T10:49:00.006-05:00

PLANET GRIFFIN returns, after a bout of technical difficulties, returns to broadcast depth with the WEEKEND EDITION! Today, the PLANET returns to the world of ASSASSINS' CREED with a new series of short film episodes that serves as a prequel leading into the game.

Episode One: 1476 Florence, Italy.
Assassin Giovanni Auditore investigates the murder of the Duke of Milan, and uncovers a conspiracy that implicates some of the most powerful families in Italy, and quite possibly, the Vatican itself! Giovanni must expose the web of treachery before he himself is assassinated!

The PLANET has come back, folks! Enjoy the weekend and stay tuned for the new features to come!

Feeling Like You're On Another Planet...

2009-11-02T00:42:00.014-05:00

They say there's nothing new under the sun anymore... Everything's a derivative of something else. From conceptual to realization, the idea generators that be tend to either 'remake' foreign series for an American audience or 'smashgenre' (mish-mashing various genre types together)... In the world of television, you've seen it in everything from Australia's 'Kathy and Kate' ( Dud) to the BBC's 'The Office' (Hit), to this interesting little remake whose original series sparked the imagination...
LIFE ON MARS.

The two versions were written similarly, both with great casts and an even greater premise:

In 2008, Police detective Sam Tyler (UK's John Simm/USA's Jason O'Mara) is struck by a car, only to awaken back in time as a police detective in 1973. Stunned and bewildered, Sam continues his police work under the command of Gene Hunt (UK's Philip Glenister/USA's Harvey Keitel), trying to figure out why he's stuck in time, and more importantly, if what he sees and feels as real IS real. The real kicker of the series is keeping the audience guessing whether Sam's gone mad, he's in a coma (both of which living inside his own head), or actually back in time.

Each episode offered clues to what could be (seeing lost souls, hospital 'progress reports' on Sam's condition bleeding in through radio and TV broadcasts, the odd character suffering from the same 'lost in time' condition, and let's not forget about the little spaceships... Yeah, you heard me right...), making for an interesting mix of sci-fi and police procedural. I found the BBC version to be incredibly thought-provoking as Sam figured out what happens, going back to present day, yet longing to get back to 1973 (To which, Sam jumped off a building to solve that problem). The American version was slightly different, where Sam learns the answer by 'waking up' to realize that he's 'living' the David Bowie song... (The series writers of the American version were hard pressed to come up with a series finale that could actually make sense seeing as how the network pushed the series producers to rush the end due to poor ratings)

If you haven't seen either series, PLANET GRIFFIN recommends you give them a try--- the BBC series is vastly superior to its American counterpart, sad to say, but then, a radical idea must have an equally radical pair of balls to realize it. (The moral of the story, folks) The American cut, recently released on DVD, is still worth viewing (only the crappy ending kills it, everything else is actually pretty cool). In addition to radical ideas, the BBC gave it another go in a sequel series in which a future female detective awakens in the 80's (at least she was spared the era of The Mary Whitehouse Experience), struggling to find her way back while investigating a serial murder spree.

The Bizarre Worlds Of A Creator's Creator: Doug Tennapel

2009-10-29T04:02:00.013-04:00

DOUG TENNAPEL is, in PLANET GRIFFIN's humble opinion, a Creator's creator... For anyone who seeks to produce their own body of work, this is certainly a guy to talk to!

I've been a fan of the bizarre worlds of Doug since the days of EARTHWORM JIM (remember SEGA, kids?), and later, my kids would become enthralled with CATSCRATCH on TV.

Outside of an already impressive workload, Doug still finds the time to crank out books... Original Graphic Novels, to be exact (y'know, those things that Joe Q. couldn't find any benefit in?). With 9 OGN's under his belt so far, (2 of my favorites I feature here) Doug proclaims his interest to continue doing a graphic novel per year till the end.

My hero.

Anyways, his philosophies and techniques in the craft of what he does is incredibly inspiring and well worth listening to, especially if you wish to learn the old school ways of traditional storytelling.

I'll admit, I was floored when I noticed that this guy inks 4 page blocks at a time! (a technique PAUL POPE talks about, and I utilize) Moreover, the simple explanation of great storytelling over 'perfection' was key in reigniting the fire under my ass to get work done!

Look, don't take my word for it, check out his work for yourself HERE. Tell me what you see. I see a reason to get back to work.