Or Summer's suggestion: "Iron Man: It's your daily requirement of iron."

Jeff Bridge=Daddy Warbucks. Robert Downey Jr.= both dom and sub, hero and prison bitch. A movie with only two women characters is going to need more soft characters, so Robert gets to have his shirt opened slowly by one man and be made helpless by another. GO SLASHERS, GO!
In an obvious but still literate and clever visual, Downey/Stark is the crippled Hephaestus. On top of everything else, he's a Tesla-like math savant, and a lone creator who has funny verbal interactions with his machine companions. (Some of the funniest lines are Stark  nattering at his waldoes.)

Being an interface wonk, I drooled over Stark's computer and design interfaces, and how plausibly they were depicted. An interface where virtual structures can be built and then tested for fit? That's for me!

The film was real-looking, like a celluloid print that's been showing for a few weeks. Even the CGI battle armor only looked clean for about two seconds. As someone who knows things in use don't stay clean, I loved this attention to detail. I kept a small sketchbook at hand, imagining myself like one of my heroes, Al Hirschfeld, who drew on paper kept in his pocket. I got some great gestures for later memory sketches. I am glad I did, everyone moved so beautifully, and were not varnished and zit-filtered to a fare-the-well.

There's so much more I liked, such as Stark's over-the-top yet believable indulgences and excesses in drink, women and luxury, but I want you to see for yourselves. IRON MAN is a solid, funny and smart action film. You deserve it.

 

Dirk Deppey links to Hey Oscar Wilde! It's Clobberin' Time! regularly. It's Steven Gettis' art collection of authors, literary figures and characters as drawn by, well, everyone in comics.

Chrestomanci as drawn by Bryan Lee O'Malley:



And, just for arcana_j:

Harry Potter by Humberto Ramos:



It's brilliant. I wish there was a book.
I wrote to Steve and asked to contribute and found out he'd been trying to reach me for about nine years! I'll be doing something for the site. I'll let it be a surprise.

Go have a look and enjoy.

Bought a copy of "How to Make Webcomics" this past weekend from Kris Straub, creator of Starslip Crisis. (I also got my Jinxlet plush, and Summer bought herself another Jinxlet.)

"How to Make Webcomics" is a nice-looking book, formatted in a kind of "Dummies" style, with pull quotes in the margins, and comments in the text by the various creators (each identified by their own caricature/icon).  It's dense with examples of the authors' work and their knowledge.
The cover is an illustration of crumbled newspapers. I get that it means you don't need a newspaper (and a syndicate) to be a comics artist (and thank god for that!).
The cover's unintentionally ironic to me, though: "Huck the delivery system, but keep the form!" and that form is solidly rooted in the newspapers: the gag strip, and that's the kind of comic "How to Make Webcomics" focuses on. Not surprising, since this what the four authors, Kellet, Straub, Kurtz and Guigar do: they're comic strip funnymen, and they're talking about what they know.
There are extensive sections on monetizing one's work, promotion and etiquette, and these are useful. The making part is about making a newspaper-style gag strip and putting it on the web. If a reader wants to know how to make a gag strip and get it on the web, this book is solid gold. If a gag strip is not what a reader wants to do, it's time to add another book to the stack, or choose a different book entirely.

I'd recommend "Making Comics" by Scott McCloud for drawing and storytelling with "How to Make Webcomics" as a supplement on marketing and delivery. 
ETA: Glitchtown on the HTMW typos:



Rasmus Pettersson's Glitchtown is a relatively new webcomic about internet tech, and so far it's funny. Check it out!

arcana_j is right.

Now everybody have you heard
If you're in the game, then the strokes the word
Don't take no rhythm, don't take no style
Got a thirst for killin', grab your vial...

You put your right hand out give a firm hand-shake
Talk to me about that one big break...
Spread your ear-pollution both far and wide...
Keep your contributions by your side and stroke me, stroke me
Could be a winner boy, you move quite well...
You got your number down...
Say you're a winner but man you're just a sinner now

You put your left foot out keep it all in place...
Work your way right into my case
First you try to bed me you make my backbone slide
But when you found you bled me-- skip on by... keep on---stroke me, stroke me
Give me the business all night long...
You're so together boy...
Say you're a winner but man you're just a sinner now

Better listen now (said) it ain't no joke
Let your conscience fail ya, just do the stroke
Don'tcha take no chances keep your eye on top
Do your fancy dances you cant stop you just stroke me, stroke me

Now backing to kicking WRITING and DRAWING ASS!

This happy dude who bought a commission from me and was willing to be silly really sums up CAPE! 2008.
Click on his smiling face for my CAPE! 2008 photo collection.

Thanks to xochitl42 who posted this handy link to "Where's My Stimulus Payment?" in the comments:

https://sa1.www4.irs.gov/irfof/IRServlet?app=IRACTC

This IS a legit link, I checked it out.

You can also go to http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=177937,00.html, scroll down to the header "Economic Stimulus Payment Calculator" and choose "Where's My Stimulus Payment?"

You need to have either your SSN or the SSN of the first person who's on the return, and the number of exceptions you claimed, which can be found on line 6d of your return.

Ours was reduced, WTF. Fantastic. (ETA: Apparently has something to do with our pre-tax amounts, buh something. Calling IRS.)

ETA: Called IRS. On hold to "Nutcracker Suite." Just now realizing the irony of that selection.
Testy person on the other end. Believes explaining means saying the same thing over and over as I try desperately to tease nuance from being told the same thing over and over.
It was a matter of asking the right question, which was, "WHAT tax credits I took affected the payment?"
Our Stimulus was reduced due to my business performing poorly and the write-offs I took. 

I really hate this week. Hard.

I have lots of awesome pictures. I think instead of writing about the whole thing, I'll just post the pics to my Flickr account tomorrow and youse guys can make up your own stories for them.

We are home again, and yay! King did most of the driving to and from. The one hour I did, I was instantly sleepy, which freaked me out. I could not keep my eyes open, but a car without a pillow (we left ours at the hotel, oops), is hard to sleep in.

The Big Gay Bruch was Big and GAY. Great food, but we'd finished eating at our table and Chris, Richard, Waid and Kirkman were still waiting. I left at 11:50 and they'd just been served.

I went around the room and took pictures for the CAPE! Sunburn Gallery. One person of every three had a burn. One of every six was burnt so bad it hurt to look at them. Sean Jackson was the worst, having a whole naked pate to fry, but Marc Andreyko was a close second, being burnt at badly as Sean, but just on one side of his face. The knuckles of Marc's writing hand were pink, too.

I'll post pictures and write more later. Right now, it's nap clobberin' time.

Special thanks to Shon for watching our critters, Paul Riddell for being my booth bunny, and Paul Benjamin for entertaining Summer at breakfast. Thanks also to everyone who is not Daniel Way for peeing somewhere they could not be seen.

My intarwubs are spotty until we get to Dallas, actually. if you need my mobile number, email me before 9AM tomorrow so I can give it to you!

One last pre-CAPE push! CAPE! is in Dallas, Texas this weekend. Worth a drive from anywhere in Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, or Arkansas! In Austin? Getcher ass up here!
Check out da vid and see what fine art goes for sweet prices at auction. All proceeds from the live art show on Friday go to the Ronald McDonald House.
Come see a galaxy of comic stars on Saturday in Craddock Park. Not just comic stars, COOL ones. NICE ones. Not a dud in the bunch.
www.capeday.com

Yah, entered a fanart contest on deviantART. First prise is a Wii, dammit!



If Y'all would be so kind as to click on the art so you go to this deviation's page and thus up its views, I'd be ever so grateful! And if you have a dA account, comment and fave!

Boy now has his own Flickr account as "mr.strangel"  for his digital photography. I discovered some excellent ones on a card in a purloined camera, and decided a Flckr account was In Order.

This is one of them. He was bouncing around a flashlight while he took the picture. My favorite of the lot you have to visit this set to see, it's so good I want it to be a surprise.



And if someone wanted to gift him an account, he'd be delighted.

David Pirkola. Comics retailer. Like a bunch of us in comics, he has no insurance. Unlike most of us, he got shot at his own store, Apparitions Comics and Books in Grand Rapids, Michigan, by some dillweed who'd already robbed him.
That's fucked up on an epic level.

Time for TEAM COMICS.

Read the story about David HERE. Donate. A buck helps. Seriously. Five helps.

As usual, make a donation of $10. or over, get yourself, a pal, a pet, whatever drawn into Rumble Girls: RLO.

Post here when you donate, get the love. Thanks!

King just got news that he has diabetes. FAN NOT TASTIC.
Like we needed this. Obligatory fuckity fuck here.

And us with no insurance, fuck you Mike pants on fire ex-Boss. And the King and I trying to work out the how to raise the kids together even though our marriage is teh ded.

Comments closed. Yeah, they're open. Thught I pulled down that pull down correctly, but obviously not. I'll take good wishes as read. It's to cut down the inevitable well-meaning advice about managing diabetes, which is about as  common and plentiful and advice about colds, cars and computers.

P.S. You do too blog about your drama. Eff off.

Apologies for not pimping this sooner. Surprisingly, my head is not up my ass, there's just a lot going on on the homefront, and all is chaos.

Anyway, I'm back for my fourth appearance at CAPE, I've been going every year since the first, even talked other pros into going, like Gail Simone. CAPE's the remedy for the Common Con. It's fun, energizing, positive. I always leave with a smile on my face.
I also get to see my homegriddles like Paul, Caroline, Richard, Chris, Bazzer, Scott Kurtz, Gail, Sean, darediva, Kit, Lisa (other), Katie, and people whose names I forget because I am a name forgetter, not because they are not awesome in every way.

So, this next weekend in Dallas, Texas, on Free Comic Book Day, ALL DAMN DAY FOR FREE is CAPE!

Also, there's a live art show on Friday, well worth coming to just for the EN-ER-GY and fun of watching live drawing. Also FREE, and moneyy raised this year is for the Ronald McDonald House! W00t!

I want to put the graphic here but LJ is being pukey.

ANYWAY, come see me! I'll be doing commissions this year since my new book for the year, Tori Amos' Comic Book Tattoo won't be released until Sandy Eggo.
BUY A COMMISSION, dammit!

Want to upgrade the RAM on the Mac, because it is barely holding its own on .75 GB. I'm looking for THREE 512MB units.

Yes, HAS to be 133, and 512MB.

Will trade or buy PC 133 someone has pulled from an old Mac or doesn't need any more.

P.S.: Drinking Shiner Bock. Smoooooov.

I am Writing This...from a Mac G4!
king-cheetah from deviantART (link is somewhat NSFW) built me a Mac for Photoshoppin'. I used the kids' Gateway tower while I was working on CBT, because it was supahcheap to soup it up to 3GB of RAM so I could work with 600DPI files. (PShop is all about the RAM and CPU, not at all about the video card.)

Anyway, it was time to surrender the Gateway (with the 3GB of RAM still in, sob, sob, I hate giving back that much RAM). The biggest obstacle to surrender was lack of Intarwubs on the Mac, because I gots no Airport, and those bitches are EXPENSIVE! It took me a while to work it, but with some online help from insanelymac.com and persistence, I got my eensy Linksys receiver to shake hands with our home network, and here I am!

Now, for a bit more RAM in this computer, and I'm good!
Me on a Mac. Who knew?

Still have to keep syncing the iPod on the laptop, though, because iTunes is a stupid bitch and you can only sync with ONE computer, even though you can authorize iTunes for up to five. Stupid poopy iTunes.

It's hard to believe a week ago I was chugging coffee shots at 1/hour and wanting to crap myself with fear I'd not make the deadline. It seems like a dream now.
I am on to finishing commissions for Kynn, Jodi and Brian.
I am finishing the Prickles ordered (gulp) last year. Anyone who's waiting for a CAPE 2007 Prickle will get it at CAPE this year. I'll have a few extras to adopt.
I am working on a fun spec project with Shon Howell. Dunno if we're ready to drop the needle yet. It's something to grab attention from/at one of the Big Two, and it undoubtedly will. Even if it's not picked up, I predict attention.
Rumble Girls: RLO begins again in May, after CAPE. I learned in making the story for Tori Amos' CBT that I can paint faster on a Cintiq than I can draw by hand, so RG: RLO will return in COLOR. YEAH. RG: RLO is GAM's big goodie for May, so be sure to check it when it goes live!
 

I had We Heart Katamari on my TV all of the last three days.  Periodically, King or Summer or Boy would wander in and play a bit.  King found himself turfed because he talked and asked questions. Summer would play, say, "See how I'm not bugging you?" and go back out.
Boy always got the longest  times, because he simply sits on the hedgehog pillow and  plays. I sing along with the songs without thinking.

I didn't play. I had put it on for quick games to wake me up when I was flagging, but never had time. Just the carrot dangling was enough.

It was left on the start screen for the last 24 hours I worked. You put your Prince or cousin someplace where the fans aren't pestering and there is a long loop of ambient sound: a dog barks, a baby squeals, voices talk, birds chirp, crickets chirp, cicadas rev up, and I think there's a scooter.
I found it really soothing.

Summer was super good while I worked. I delivered a stern warning about what missing this deadline meant both fiscally and professionally. She's been really depressed have had such a formless two weeks. But yesterday, with all my work done, and me dozing in a chair babysitting uploads she scared up a dog leash and took Krypto to the park. She came back cheery and with a drawing of Krypto dragging her around.

This morning was the caffeine crash. By the time I got the kids out of the house for a surprise treat of fast food breakfast, I had the shakes, the sweats and cold chills because the headache had turned into a migraine. The thought of coffee made me want to heave. However, like a drunkard, a hair of the coffee dog fixed me up. So did the burger with proper greens on.

More later. It is now fall down time.

No fussing at me, I just want to document as a warning to you all that, duh, if you do about a shot of coffee an hour for 48 hours, withdrawal hits in about...right away.

And it's even better about twelve hours later.

It hurts, but it's all part of the trip, folks. Now I have added to my store of knowledge. And I'm going to go get coffee.

Tori Amos Comic Book Tattoo story is in. There is tweaking, because there always is tweaking.

ETA: I am still tired, but have to apologize to Lisa Jonte for not mentioning at all that she saved my uploading bacon by giving me access to the Women's Work (never-done.com) FTP site. The CBT server was SLAMMED, but that happens with nearly 100 creators and 400+ pages.
Thank you Lisa, BAWK BAWK!

But I'm DONE, and can say with confidence that this is some of the best work of my career. All that playing with digital paint programs really paid off. I was nearly done before I realized I'd only done loose breakdowns, and a small amount of character design, in paper pencil. The rest was digital, Photoshop and the Cintiq. I have finally reached a point I have been striving for for some time: which is a level of mastery over my medium, so that I'm comfortable enough to work well, but also able to experiment easily.
I learned a lot making all the various digital pieces of fanart and fun drawings for myself. One of the things was expressing dents in a surface. I learned it to draw a costume of a chewed pencil. I was able to use that all over this story! (Expressing dents, but pencil costumes.)
Really a great feeling.
Working on this story feels like I have been through a long, intense journey. I had a HELL of a lot of fun making the art and challenging myself.

I VERY MUCH wish I could show it to you all right now, because I am so proud, but it will be worth the wait and then some.

Thanks so much for your encouragement. It is great to know you're all there.

Now I fall down go boom. Love to all.

P.S.: Hours of drawing and only minor shoulder issues because I was tensing up. I lowered my desk, and shoulder issues gone. NO carpal tunnel issues at all. The casualties are that my ass is waffled with the fabric texture of my chair, and I didn't get up enough and my ankles are really swollen.