Fucking Comic Book Movies!

If you didn't guess by the title this one is about comics and movies and when the two collide. Before I get into it though I want to give you a short timeline of my comic book fandom. This should allow you to take the rest with an appropriate grain of salt.

1993: Was given a box of old Marvel and DC comics by my uncle and read them all (mostly shite).

1994: Started to buy shitty 50 cent comics at the Quick Stop Mart by my house.

1995: Discovered Spawn, a comic my mother hated and did everything to keep me from (i was 8) and one I loved and started to collect.

1995-2003 Kept reading comics and Collecting Spawn.

2004: Decided comic were for kids and lamers and Sold my Complete Spawn collection (including #1-6 in pristine condition) to help pay for my first car (a shitty red Ford Escort).

2007: Met one Mr. Ryan Jones and read my first couple of comics in 3 years.

2008: Kept reading comics occasionally liking them but feeling like I should not

2009: I came out of the "Nerd Closet" started reading like crazy and trying to catch up on a lot of lost years.

2010: I proudly buy comics every week and love to talk about them and try to convert people who don't read them.

Now,

FUCKING COMIC BOOK MOVIES!

Over the past 10 years the movie industry has seemed to have a huge boner for comics. Each summer at least one or two of the most highly anticipated and highest grossing movies of the year are straight from their pages. Spiderman 1 & 2 and The Dark Knight even managed to be in the top ten highest grossing movies since 2000. But why?

Don't ask a comic book nerd I can tell you that. By in large there are few, if any comic book movies that are universally accepted as good by "true comic fans". This may be in part because fans of comics are the most ravenous and steadfastly loyal fans there are in the world. When they like something they LOVE it. They memorize every nuance and detail. They buy the shirts, the toys, the posters and the trades (for those who don't know a "trade" refers to a trade paperback version of a book that compiles the single issue comics).

These fans can be some of the best and the worst fans in the world . They will support you for years and make you very rich (sort of, I mean we're talking about comics) But on the other hand if you mess with that thing they love, no fans hate more passionately then comic book fans either. A simply change of artist or character decision (say you decide Thor has 40 fucking hammers now. Am I right Jones?) This can insight true and undying rage.

This brings me to comic book movies. The major issue all filmmakers run into when they are deciding what to do with the juicey new comic licence they just picked up is (I'm guessing) finding how to go about making a movie that the general public will eat up and love but that will not piss off too many nerds. This is IMPOSSIBLE. You see, by in large, the things that make comics appealing to their fans are things that also set them apart from mainstream consumption. Whether through ideas or content comics express themselfs in a unique way that rarely can be transfered to another medium.

Another problem is that comics ARE books and because of that fact a huge amount of the what a person gets from them comes from how an individual interprets them. Whether it is as simple as how a character sounds (Batman?) or the intended tone, a book is often much more open for individual experiences than a film.

The final problem with comic book movies is even if someone makes a perfect interpretation of a fans favorite comic, down to every last detail, they will have already seen it.

Oh shit! I almost forgot here's my lame-ass video review of Kickass

Multi-Blog

So I have been trying to write a blog for a while now. First I had writers block issues and then I was sick. Now I sit down to write and I still can't decide what to write about. In light of that I have concluded that this blog will be composed of a few mini blogs all with different subjects. Enjoy or whatever.

The New Rebel

It been happening over the past few years. All over the world what was once considered edgy and cool is being co-opted by the mainstream. The things that set true independent thinkers and revolutionaries apart can now be seen on MTV or even worst, Disney channel. I'm talking about things like tattoos and piercings, thrift store clothes, even things like punk rock are being reduce to a fine gray powder for the whole idiotic world to snort. How is a person supposed to set them selfs apart without risking becoming the new poster child for mediocrity? Even the "nerd culture" is being somewhat invaded by the mainstream. Suddenly the people who used to beat me up are calling them selfs nerds and talking about how the used to play NES all the time. No you fucking did not!! You threw my back pack in the ditch everyday and then I went home crying and my mom let me play video games to cheer me up while you went to football practice.

Anyway my point here is this (I think) Having tattoos and piercings no longer makes you a rebel and being good at Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 or Halo does not make you a "nerd".

Red Dead Redemption

This game looks FUCKING awesome. Like some kinda Grand Theft Auto in the old west. I'll be in line at midnight on May 18 for sure. For more videos check out the Rockstar Games Offical Site

My Brazilian Adventure

I tried to write a short story with that title a few weeks ago but found my own writing boring (more boring then usual?). Basically it was meant to chronicle my fictional trip to the amazon in which I was killed my head hunters. It Sucked. The whole story basicly boiled down to one statement: "Never hire a cheap river guide". Fuck I suck sometimes....(always?)

I Would Punch A 12 Year Old If No One Was Looking

Seriously. There are so many little teenagers that come into the Octopus' Garden and walk around like they're hot shit (and then steal things). They always act like I just kicked their dog whenever I ask if I can help them find anything. Then later (after they have giggled at some fart joke or something) they come up and ask "Where's the rasta bracelets?" or "Do you guys sell Bob Marley stuff?" First off, little assholes, you had your chance to procure my help and refused it and secondly what the fuck go you want with Rasta and Bob Marley "stuff"? Most of you tiny clowns have no idea why Bob Marley is famous let alone what Rasta even is. So please fuck off or I will punch you.

My Next Post

Since I had some trouble finding something to write about last time I decided to get my readers involved and let you guys help me decide what to write my next blog about. Below are a few ideas. If you have some different (better) ideas let me know via Twitter @CameraManSteve or via my new Facebook Page