#fialkov

[missus-andrist]

I said what I said

[im-the-king-of-the-ocean]

3BP2 Episode 5: Ill Gotten Gains

Since it’s a slow Sunday, we’re going for a two-fer!

I do 2 watches of favorite shows when they first come out.  The first, a single binge-watching session through all new episodes, so I can feel all the emotions I’m gonna feel.  The second is slower, to fully take in the new material and sort out my thoughts.  This time, with 3Below, I’ve decided to liveblog my second watch through.

Episode 1.  Episode 2.  Episode 3.  Episode 4.

Beneath the cut, thoughts on 3Below Part 2 Episode 5: Ill Gotten Gains.

>Anytime Aja is excited about anything is a win for me.  I love her enthusiasm so freaking much.

>Also Krel doing trial runs with his worm hole generator.  Man, do I love these two as protagonists, as well as the dynamic they have with each other.

>Spaghettification is one of my fav words too, now

>You guys are just gonna go outside in your Akiridion forms huh?  In broad daylight where the neighbors can see.  Do you guys even have neighbors I wonder?

>My dudes, you have no idea how long I waited for the Arrrgh!!! in summer school thing to pay off after seeing a promo image for it, and the scene did not disappoint 😆 

>Coach Lawrence, I’m just curious how you think getting a massive stone troll on a high school wrestling team is going to go over with your school’s rivals, or anyone.

Although, that should definitely be the way the rest of the world learns about trolls.  Not some big plot thing.  Coach Lawrence convincing Arrrgh!!! to wrestle for him.

gonna give more bonus points to Arrrgh!!! for being AWESOME SAUCE!!!

>Kubritz, you should really listen to Costas.  I mean, you really should.  Did I mention how this show is slowly convincing me to like Costas, because this show is slowly convincing me to like Costas.

>The return of Jim Lake disease warrants points for continuity

(I don’t actually have a points system I’m using in these liveblogs and I don’t really know why I keep awarding points, but it’s fun)

>Yay for Vex and Zadra working together!  And Luug too!

>Luug and Buster friendship FOR THE WIN!

>I really like Mary’s interrogation.  Especially how she points out that “Teddy” (the guy in the orange jumpsuit with Costas interrogating her) is weird.  Like, yes, way to point out that the Area 49B guys are weird, especially how they just barged into the school.  You go, Mary, for pointing out they’re kind of hypocrites about the whole ‘weird’ thing.

This is an episode I enjoy a lot because it shows how the high schoolers aren’t only willing to protect trolls (Arrrgh!!! is literally walking by the door as the interrogation happens, but Mary doesn’t point that out), but later the Akiridions too.  Like, I don’t feel like there’s much to analyze too deeply here because it’s a well put-together episode making a point that I think really belongs in a children’s show, especially considering the current climate in the US.

>I like how Toby does question Aja and Krel’s plan (his ‘they’re here for you’ line), but can’t act on it because Aja jumps out from their hiding spot and prevents him.

>It just occurred to me that Tronos attacking Aja and Krel at the school parallels how Angor Rot attacked Jim at the school in Trollhunters.

Just I feel like there’s a lot of narrative parallels between Tronos and Angor Rot that I need to explore more at some point.

>Steve and Eli hanging out is cute.  I do like ‘cheese slice’ as a nickname.

>Why couldn’t they have left the Toby fat jokes in the past, just ghsijghfsjghefsji I don’t like those.

>The fact they implied that Kubritz did something to Krel here ups the intensity quite a lot.  This is the beginning of 3Below Part 2 not being afraid to throw down.

>Also, the beginning of Tronos’s backstory.  It doesn’t make much sense because last episode he said Aja was worth billions/the bounty was his because he had the royals (which shows he does care about the money).

However, I do this backstory for him (so I don’t mind the sudden switch all too much).  I think ‘avenging his homeworld’s destruction’ has more depth to it than ‘I want to be rich’.  I also like the implications that Fialkov and Coranda may not have been as honorable as their children think.  Between this and the fact Fialkov would not let Vex avenge his family, it shows they may have not been perfect monarchs.

On the one hand, I do want to say that this development was never really acted on in the show so it was wasted potential.  On the other, I’m willing to give the writers a chance.

For instance, they introduced the Deep in S2 of Trollhunters and then dropped it for the rest of that show, only to return to it later in S2 of 3Below.  Given what the Deep was, they could not have expanded on it in TH without spoiling plot points for 3B.  I’m not saying we will see more to Fialkov and Coranda’s characters in Wizards (because yeah maybe it was just wasted potential).

What I am saying is that I’m willing to give the writers a chance.  What might feel like a plot hole in one series may be an intentional withholding of information as to not spoil the next series.

Essentially, I’m not too keen on saying the writers wasted the potential of Aja and Krel’s parents (or Morando for that matter), because they may have plans to return to them and expand on them when tying all three shows together.  In this particular instance, I’m going to withhold my full judgment until Wizards is out and I can see the entire narrative laid out in completion.

>The Vex and Zadra vs. the Foo Foos fight gives some much needed levity to this episode.

>I really really like the scene where Eli confronts Steve about shoving people in lockers.  It shows that a) they did have a conversation about Steve’s past bullying and Steve listened to Eli and b) Steve maintains his personality, but he’s also changing for the better.  Just, all I’ve ever wanted if the writers are going to continue to have Steve be a recurring character is improvement from him.

>The last confrontation between Kubritz and the kids and Coach Lawrence was so immensely good.  One thing I absolutely love about 3Below is how it addresses issues like immigration and how it shows how kids can stand up against people like Kubritz.  idk I think that’s something really important to have in a children’s cartoon.

>Mary and Darci’s little hand gesture is cute.

>Aja deciding she needs to know the truth about Voltar is great character development for her.  It strikes me as the beginning of her heading to queenship.  Aja, personally, may not like the idea of being a royal, but she is resolute about standing up for what’s right and is willing to use her royal status for that cause.  This harkens back to Part 1, in the Arcadian Job, where she decides to help Stuart help free Buster.  She believed it was the right thing to do, so she did it.  To me, that plus her determination to know what happened to Voltar, is the beginning of setting her up to be a good queen.

Also, Aja’s been shown to be extremely sympathetic to grotesque/unusual creatures.  Again, with Buster in season 1.  When we’re introduced to them, Luug seems to be more her pet than Krel’s.  Arrrgh!!! is strange to her, yet she finds him magnificent.  

Aja, I think, is capable of great empathy and care (and these interactions are the evidence of that).  She does not fear someone because of the way they look, or considers them a monster.  I really love that about her.

Thinking about it, I also believe it is these things that set her up to return to Akiridion-5 to rule (rather than Krel, who’s motivated more by scientific research and discovery and has less of the diplomatic/charismatic characteristics required of a monarch).  A huge driving force behind a lot of the actions Aja does is connecting with others, which is something she is shown to do easily.  As a ruler, she would have more power to reach out to those in need and, as herself, would have an easier time empathizing and connecting with them.

Aja doesn’t have to stop being herself to be a queen.

and now I feel an entire Aja analysis coming on, so I’m gonna stop here.

[jackalsiii]

Cataclysm : Ultimate X-Men 1

Cataclysm : Ultimate X-Men 1

Writer Josh Fialkov

Penciler Alvaro Martinez

Penciler John Lucas

Colorist Jordie Bellaire

Letterer VC’s Joe Sabino

Part One of Three

Ultimate Kitty Pryde is only referenced twice in Rogue’s narration captions.  Which I find disappointing as I was hoping she was leading the charge.  Hopefully she shows up in this mini or the proper Cataclysm miniseries.

Kitty sends a rescue squad to what is left…

View On WordPress

[jlmast]

Hey gang, on may 7, go to your local comic-shop and get a free comic book!

My bro Geoffo and I did the layouts for this "Amazing Spider-man: Who am I ?" book, so, go get it! 

[joshfialkov]

USA Today Names THE BUNKER the best digital comic of 2013.

Best digital series: The Bunker. Joshua Hale Fialkov and Joe Infurnari's DIY digital comic garnered a print home with Oni Press and a TV deal, too. As it should, since its concept — a bunch of kids are faced with what their future selves will unleash — is one of the best seen in any entertainment medium this year. Honorable mention:The Private Eye. Only Brian K. Vaughan doing a surprise comic could crash a website with people wanting to peep it. He and Marcos Martin let fans pay whatever they want to for installments of their sci-fi mystery about a society where people wear masks for privacy's sake, yet it's so good, one might consider it priceless.

And you can check it out in stores in a special enhanced print edition from onipress in February!  Order form here. 

Source: http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/2013/12/31/best-comic-books-of-2013/4259801/

[ajenjo]

[rayegunn]

Come on DC, this is wrong on so many levels. First, killing off one of your, if not THE most prominent black characters? Second, you made a promise to creators not that long ago to not fuck with stories once approved... so then you turn around and have Fialkov kill off one of the two stars of his book after his pitched story had already been greenlit? And Diggle ALSO walked off of Action due to meddling? And both of them before their first issues even hit the stands? This HAS to be a sign that you're doing something seriously wrong in regards to how you treat creative. If writers keep walking due to meddling, especially after that promise you made to them, you're soon not going to have anyone left.

I mean. I understand that from a storytelling point, sometimes a character death is called for. I get that. But if Fialkov didn't think a character death was called for, why did editorial? What possible purpose could this death serve which would justify it? And why Stewart rather than Gardner? I'm not saying race should grant immunity to this sort of thing, but when you have so few black characters to start with, I think the death of one of them should be approached with extra care, especially if they are as prominent as John Stewart. It should be impactful and have a good, well thought out storytelling reason behind it.

And not only that, he is the Green Lantern in much of the animated fare, and is more recognizable to many people than even Hal, so this move becomes extra baffling, since you are killing off a potential gateway character that could be a bridge for people to move from TV to the comics.

I understand that as a company DC (or Marvel etc) has the right to determine the direction of the characters they own, and have the right to veto what writers would like to do  with them. I get that, and don't have a problem with this in general. But there is a right way and a wrong way to go about it, and I think DC has consistently been going about it in the wrong way. Last minute changes to already approved stories, which just results in a directionless floundering mess of a book, is definitely at the top of the list of things not to do.  Marvel has been doing much better in treating it's talent well, recently, and people are going to move to greener pastures. I have been greatly enjoying much of the Marvel Now stuff, in a large part because the books feel more cohesive, like they have a solid direction to them, and the writer isn't being constantly shot down by editorial. I am not sure exactly how true this is in practice, but as someone who has been a comic reader for some time now, I've come to recognize certain telltale signs of excessively heavy handed editorial, and I'm not seeing it at Marvel right now, (outside of events) and the books are better for it. To Fialkov, Diggle, and any other creator who has walked over excessive meddling, good for you for sticking to your creative guns. If more writers would do that, DC will (one would hope) be forced to treat all of creative a bit better.

[myramblingspace-blog-blog]

I, Vampire is a bloody brilliant read

First off, I should start by pointing out that I wasn't going for a pun with that title. I was just trying to emphasise my point in a very British way, but it works.

Anyway, here goes my first attempt at reviewing a comic. When DC announced last year that they were rebooting their catalogue with 52 new titles, I wasn't sure how to react. I'd only been reading comics properly for a few months and was enjoying the stories at the time. But when the first wave came out I was looking forward to sorting the wheat from the chaff.

One of my favourites so far has been I, Vampire. I've always enjoyed vampires, but in the classic sense. Not the glittery, teen girl fantasy fuel of Twilight (I actually felt the bile rising up my throat in anger as I wrote that word!), but the dark, mysterious and evil vampires of Bram Stoker. I, Vampire has been refreshing in that it doesn't romanticise vampires. It's clear that you are meant to dislike Mary, and you do. Joshua Hale Fialkov is weaving a great story with this book and it's one of the very few titles I'm actually looking forward to reading each month.

The art is a brilliant compliment to the story. I'm not going to be able to explain this well, but I'll give it a go. I really like the way that Andrea Sorrentino draws faces and bodies and the use of shadow and darkness is a fantastic compliment to the theme. And there seems to a be mistiness or fogginess throughout that adds a great effect. And the splash pages are developing, I'm going to post an image of one from issue 5 which I think is amazing.

That wasn't a very good review to be fair, mainly because I find it quite hard to put in to words my opinions on artwork, no matter how much I enjoy it. But if there are any comic fans reading this and you haven't read I, Vampire yet, I highly recommend picking it up.