Youtuber RyanIverson is responsible for a series of funny videos in which Moon favourite Werner Herzog seems to read childrens stories, but with the stark, dark philosophy that pervades his work.
Jul
26
Yesterday a bit of browsing in Waterstones (other bookshops are available) led me to find a book of ‘Dream of the Rarebit Fiend’ strips by Winsor McCay, which featured daily in New York Evening Telegram from 1904 to 1911, essentially each strip represents a strange and fantastic dream brought on by the hallucinogenic properties of cheese. The illustration is just stunning, and the ideas are great. He also wrote Little Nemo in Slumberland aimed at kids, which apparently had an influence on Sandman. It just amazes me how newspaper comic strips seemed to reach their artistic peak virtually from the word ‘go’ (although I ’spose cartoons and illustrations had been around much much longer). Another serious love of mine is George Herriman and his Krazy Kat strips created in 1913, but more on him in a future post…
Mar
26
It is my duty and my joy to bring to your attention the illustrated wonder that is goodshowsir.co.uk. Celebrating all that is bad in genre fiction cover illustrations, the site presents some true howlers and then throws down the gauntlet to YOU - can you find worse?
Nov
7
Michael Crichton, creator of one of the most influencial film franchises of my youth (Jurassic Park, not Police Academy) died recently until he was dead. In honour of his huge impact on film and television (and for the cleverer people amongst you… books I suppose) Here are some of his various works and some comments on his greatness. He died aged 66 (that’s years) after struggling with the cancer. Nobody likes the cancer. It sucks.
Aug
20
Fox cancelled Family guy twice. They cancelled futurama. They even cancelled Firefly. How come they still exist? This is a company that seems to have absolutely NO interest in the product that they produce. Now they want to stop the up and coming Watchmen film from Warner because they have sat on the option for ten years. These people do not care about anything but money. So try not to give them any. Give it to someone who needs it. That’s not Fox.
Feck you Fox and everyone who makes the choices in your organisation.
And Time Warner: get the your act together.
(edit: this is great. check out what Fox news terms a ‘terrorist-fist-jab’, Frakking twangers.)
Aug
19
Picture the scene: The brave pilots of the Rebellion prepare for their attack. Their target – an armoured space station with enough fire power to destroy an entire planet! In close formation they speed towards the vast structure. At first only a spec, it looms closer into view and we view its mighty form and its… its…
A giant lightsaber! Floating in space! It’s name – get this – is The Darksaber and it’s being piloted not by the GALACTIC EMPIRE but by Jabba The Hutt’s wayward nephew.
If this sounds like derivative rubbish that’s because it is. It would be embarrassing if suggested by a teenage nerd at a role playing party – the lad in question getting hit with several non-mint condition action figures - but it’s not. It forms an officially licensed story in Lucas Film’s Expanded Universe line of books. Darksaber by Kevin J. Anderson is one of literally hundreds of books set in the gaps before, between and after the six Star Wars films. And most of them are crap.
Aug
1
Bone
Rosscoe | books | 1st 08, 2008| No Comments »
