Off the Cuff - Edition 3

By Eric Barrett

Comics, Cartoons, and all things related

* So did everyone catch The Batman on WB last weekend? I thought it was pretty good. I’m not sure I like the “strange” designs of the villains. The Joker looked more monkey-like then Joker-ish. But I thought they’ve done a very good job otherwise.

* Is it me, or does Batman get some of the coolest animations of any superhero? Is there anything cooler than Batman’s silhouette in the darkness with only his white ‘eyes’ visible? Yeah, I don’t think so either.

* Current top 3 Favorite Books:
1. Identity Crisis
2. Batman/Superman
3. The MonolithSo come tell me what your top 3 books are.

* Ask me on another day and I could easily include She-Hulk in there. See, this is how the internet works. As I was preparing this, I noticed that Blake mentioned on his website that She-Hulk may be cancelled. So I guess that means I’m joining the growing crowd of people to tell you to go check out the book (before it’s too late!)
And while I’m on the topic, check out this little number on She-Hulk. Probably the best column I’ve seen written on this well deserving book.

* Boy, that sounded a little ominous didn’t it!

* So I’ve finished Part 1 of the Batman: War Games saga. I have to say I like it so far. It even had a bit of a surprise plot twist. But there is just something missing from the story. I’m not quite sure what. Maybe it’s character interaction. There just doesn’t seem to be a consistency across books. But I suppose that’s a problem you pay when doing a cross-over.

* I think I’ve come to the realization that we are in a bit of a cartoon renaissance. There are a lot of great shows (old and new) on TV today: The Batman; Yu Yu Hakusau; Trigun; Inuyasha; Teen Titans; TMNT; re-runs of G.I. Joe; Shaman King; Spider-Man; Gargoyles. And there are others too.
Now I suppose some of you may scoff at this list. Because a lot of these shows are anime/manga influenced. But I like ‘em so there!

* I forgot to mention Thundarr the Barbarian. I loved that show as a kid, and I guess I still do. For the time, it was a great show with a pretty consistent plot. A lot of older cartoons suffer from poor dialogue and plots. Sure a lot of them were still entertaining, but nothing you could consider ‘high-quality’ stories. But Thundarr was a different breed. It had an interesting idea (post apocalyptic world ruled by sorcerers and magic). Sure post-apocalypse themes are prevalent, but none seemed as vibrant as Thundarr. I think it was the way you could always see signs of cities and technology in the background.
But Thundarr also made me interested in RPG’s. I always like to play as a barbarian in part because of Thundarr.

* I recently picked up the first 3 issues of The Monolith for a whopping $3.00. And I have to say, it sky-rocketed into my top 3 books (which you already knew if you’re reading this column!). This is one of those unique books that actually has some thought behind it. There is plenty of action, some really cheesy dialogue. But there is some genuine thought and philosophy behind the concept. My kind of book!

* So I was watching Cowboy Bebop the other day. They were showing ships traveling through some kind of rings in space. I guess it’s their equivalent of ‘warp speed’. Anyway, it occurred to me how much money those things must have cost. To build rings from Earth to Mars or wherever. What a phenomenal price tag!It also occurs to me that here in the states, all of the Department of Transportations have little nicknames. PennDoT (PA), ODoT (Ohio), etc. But for the rings in Cowboy Bebop, would it be GDoT (Galaxy DoT) or MdoT (Mars DoT)? Maybe RBRDot (Really Big Rings DoT)?

* I see there’s a new computer graphics version of a G.I. Joe movie coming out. The last one they did was okay, but they switched the laser colors! G.I. Joe using blue lasers and Cobra using red lasers. How could this happen?! Who could have possibly made such a fundamental mistake? I want names!

* Maybe I should contact Dan Rather and have him get to the bottom of it.

* Well I bit into the hype of Venom vs. Carnage the other day. I’ve always been a bit fascinated by Venom. To me he represents a bit of Frankenstein’s Monster. The question that follows him is whether he is good, evil, or neutral. Sort of a Frank Sinatra of comic books if you will. Frankenstein’s Monster was evil. But Venom? I’m not so sure, and that’s the lure of his character.

* Now where was I? Oh yes, Venom vs. Carnage. I think I like the book, but I’m not sure. But I do know that the art creeps me out. It’s too ’sinewy’ for my tastes. It’s like a hyper-pseudo-realism or something. But I’ll stick with it since it’s a set run. I guess we shall see what we shall see.

* Looking back on this column, perhaps I should change the name to “Off the Batman”. But that’s okay. And gosh darn it, people like me.
In fact that seems the case for a lot of things. Have you noticed how many Batman books there are right now? It’s gotta be close to 15 books on the shelves. Who does he think he is, Wolverine?

* Well folks, that’s it for this Edition of Off the Cuff. I’ve managed to run both my columns all the way up to the mighty number 3. Not too shabby, considering I use trained monkeys to type these columns. (I know, it shows).

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