There have been so many shocks and surprises and the internet just can’t be broken anymore. It’s become tougher, like when you tear a phone book into pieces and eventually it just won’t rip anymore. How do you tell who’s who and what’s what in this new world out there? Don’t worry. I’m here to comfort and guide. Welcome to the world outside B@N. Welcome to Meanwhile….

Your meme for the week.

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Over at 52 Pickup this week Douglas Wolk talks about how many plot threads still need to be wrapped up in the remaining issues of the series.

Really, even beyond all the little danglers, there are some elements of this series that desperately require dramatic closure–the Booster/Rip Hunter/Daniel Carter plot, the Adam/Kory plot and the Buddy/yellow aliens plot, most notably, each of which seems to demand a solid issue worth of exploration–and given that next week is Kaboom Unlimited, it’s starting to feel like any kind of wrap-up those stories get is going to be compressed into two or three pages of exposition, tops. I’d also like to see some kind of extended coda for the Ralph plot and another one for the Montoya/Question plot, but at this point I’m suspecting that a Darick Robertson issue apiece was all we’re going to get.

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Friday Night Fights. It’s still going strong.

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Talking about the fact that there’s nothing to talk about is kind of boring. At least it got people talking.

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Have I mentioned that Laura is pretty handy with the linkblogging?

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Bully shows us the way Captain America should be portrayed.

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More Jimmy Olsen goodness at the ISB.

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Comic Coverage continues to be a blog to watch with it’s Dear Editor feature that looks at past lettercolumns.

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This looks familiar. I’m glad someone else is doing the weekly blog roundup. I like the intro.

The comics blogiverse is an increasingly diverse network of comics pundits, fans and fanatics — not to mention professional creators themselves — where one can find a variety of fascinating and/or obnoxious opinions to suit any taste, or lack thereof. Every Saturday, I’ll offer up excerpts from five of the more interesting, thought-provoking posts I’ve come across over the past week, for better or worse.

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I don’t remember seeing Starman in my viewing of 300.

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Dorian is taking a look at DC’s brother/sister team with his posts on Why Jade Had to Die and The Many Moods of Obsidian.

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Stuart Immomen on Computers and Art. It’s our competition, but a good post is a good post.

Also, huge imagebanks and community photosites started cropping up online. If I wondered whether the NYPD drove Ford Crown Victorias or Chevy Impalas (trick question– they use both), the answer was available in a matter of clicks. Need to know the typical architecture in the Pyrenees or the Ginza? No problem. The governing philosophy is this: reference is a device, and is only as useful as the artist who wields it is talented. In other words, ideally, it will spur creativity, not stifle it, allowing the artist to work efficiently and effectively. This philosophy isn’t new, but there are some camps who will not recognize its value. Still, as more artists reveal their practices in trade magazines or in work blogs, I think digital referencing is gaining momentum.

And I think it’s changing the way artists approach their work.

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I remember when Malibu cranked out some good comics month after month. I also remember when they put out material like Mantra Volume 2.

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Dick picks up on a discussion about fan interaction after enjoying a nice talk on the subject over at Howling Curmudgeons.

Anyway, the comments lead to a discussion of which creators manipulate the internet to their advantage (Simone, to some extent Priest) and which ones have done basically the opposite (Byrne, of course). Someone also makes the argument that this kind of fan-pro interaction is practically inevitable, given that the absence of letter columns in DC/Marvel titles have made the internet the only viable option for creators seeking feedback. I tend to disagree here–I think the decline of the letter column has more to do with the advantages of the internet for fanboy bellyaching than editors’ distaste for letter columns. I also think it’s a little curious that the bigger alternative-type creators don’t have the same net presence as their mainstream and ground-level counterparts.

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Superman Anti-Smoking Cartoons

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Jog reviews the recent issue of All-Star Superman.

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Michael Turner meet Dave Cockrum.

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Back in Black: A Medical Review

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Lisa and Mellissa discuss the kincaid effect in comics.

Basically, to sum up the post, the “Kincaid Effect” refers to a female character that starts off cool but then has her characterization change rapidly to accomodate a male character and his storyline. This includes unlikely romance. (The name refers to Jill Hennessey’s character on Law and Order).

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I feel the same way about the DC Animated Universe too. As much as I enjoy that universe, it’s still an Elseworlds to me. It doesn’t “count”.

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Dick, this is for you. What’s the point of World War Hulk?

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Another good article. Storytelling Engines are books that while cancelled, were later used as elements points in later stories.

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Here’s a preview of the next volume of Flight.

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Mike Sterling talks about this years FCBD offerings.

Well, I don’t know that I have a whole lot to add beyond what I’ve already said last year (before and after), so aside from some comments about some of this year’s offerings, and any horror stories that may arise from the day itself, I’ll probably not be talking too much about it.

That said, I do want to note some things: Marvel’s offering this time around has the potential, for once, of actually being good. A new, full-length, Dan Slott written and Phil Jimenez drawn Spider-Man story, which will be out about the time of Spider-Man 3…barring any inappropriate content for younger readers (always possible, given Marvel’s usual “two giant steps backward for every tiny step forward” publishing strategy), this could make a nice all-ages giveaway.

On the other hand, we have DC’s Justice League of America #0.

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God, I love James Jean’s work.

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The Comic Book Goddess translates this weeks DC Nation.

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The Roar of Comics discusses rehabilitation in the wake of this last issue of Detective Comics featuring Harley Quinn.

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More DCU theories from Those Wednesdays

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The rehabilitation of Hank Pym.

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Has anyone heard anything about this new series from DC, The Unmen? Sterling? Would you mind filling in a little background info since they were originally in Swamp Thing? I’d love to see Tomer on a monthly book, even if it’s just covers.

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Is there anything I missed this week? If so, let me know in the comments section.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 17th, 2007 at 10:10 am and is filed under Meanwhile.... You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.