Pretty much an expected result for your first-ever game -- especially one on the road, hundreds of miles from home, against a team with a highly regarded wide receiver. First play from scrimmage by Shenandoah: a long touchdown pass. Score at halftime: Shenandoah 42-7. Touchdowns for great WR: five. But, hey, Stevenson won the second half -- and they actually made fewer mistakes than Notre Dame did in that slopfest against South Florida! That's something, at least.
This coming week is "Stadiumpalooza," a week-long series of events culminating with the first home game against Christopher Newport next Saturday night. Nicky and I, season tickets in hand, will be there for an on-the-spot report.
Saturday, September 3, 2011
Friday, September 2, 2011
Getting-out-of-the-Business Sale
The November PREVIEWS is out, and we get to see the residue of "The kaboom! kollapse," aka what kaboom! is going to offer the kiddies now that original Disney comics have been "kicked to the kurb." SPACE WARPED, SNARKED, WORD GIRL, and a new (!!) PEANUTS comic book... not exactly the kid-comic version of "Murderers' Row," eh? More like "Murmurer's Row," if you ask me -- though I will try out issue #0 of the PEANUTS book, just to see whether it can improve upon the not-entirely-satisfying WARM BLANKET project.
Not that Boom! Disney comics are absent from the sales list. Far from it, in fact... for Boom! is advertising just about EVERY hardcover and softcover collection that it has ever published in what I imagine is the equivalent of an "everything must go!" warehouse sale. Unfortunately, Boom! does not appear to have lowered the prices on these collections; the superb WALT DISNEY'S VALENTINE'S CLASSICS, for example, is still listed at $24.99. So if you want to pick up any of these beauties at a reduced price, Amazon is still probably your best bet.
.
.
.
November is also a good month to sample TINTIN, as a number of reprints, biographies of Herge, etc. are being published in advance of the December 23 release of Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson's The Adventures of Tintin. I've seen the trailer for the latter, and it looks... well, "interesting" is a safe choice of word right now. But if you ever wanted to dive into Herge's marvelous works, then this would appear to be the opportune time to do so.
Not that Boom! Disney comics are absent from the sales list. Far from it, in fact... for Boom! is advertising just about EVERY hardcover and softcover collection that it has ever published in what I imagine is the equivalent of an "everything must go!" warehouse sale. Unfortunately, Boom! does not appear to have lowered the prices on these collections; the superb WALT DISNEY'S VALENTINE'S CLASSICS, for example, is still listed at $24.99. So if you want to pick up any of these beauties at a reduced price, Amazon is still probably your best bet.
.
.
.
November is also a good month to sample TINTIN, as a number of reprints, biographies of Herge, etc. are being published in advance of the December 23 release of Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson's The Adventures of Tintin. I've seen the trailer for the latter, and it looks... well, "interesting" is a safe choice of word right now. But if you ever wanted to dive into Herge's marvelous works, then this would appear to be the opportune time to do so.
Book Review: HAROLD GRAY'S LITTLE ORPHAN ANNIE, VOLUME 7 (IDW Publishing, 2011)
Harold Gray was on the roll of all rolls during the period 1936-38 covered in this latest volume. The volume concludes with the initial portion of what is arguably Gray's best single story (actually, it's practically a comic-strip novel in terms of density and detail), the saga of Abigail Alden, Jack the truck-driver, the abandoned mother Rose Chance and her waif, the greedy Uriah Gudge, and the one-legged old salt Shanghai Peg. The best-known part of this epic was reprinted many years ago in THE SMITHSONIAN COLLECTION OF NEWSPAPER COMICS; this early installment allows us to settle in with the characters and really get to know them. Imagine a creator daring to do that in this era of stamp-sized panels and transparent gags -- as if it were even possible, of course. After several stories in which she is oddly passive, Annie returns to proactive mode as she helps the elderly Abigail stave off foreclosure and keeps the impromptu "family" in Alden's home operational. The only thing that seems fairly contrived about the story is the way in which Annie and Sandy wind up in Alden's town; just after completing another adventure, they are accidentally locked in the back of a truck and driven away. I suppose it could have happened, especially during the rail-hopping era of the Great Depression, but still, it seems a bit... unsubtle.
Gray was at such a compositional peak here that he manages to take what on the surface seem dreary plot notions -- Annie helps the down-on-her-luck flower-seller Ginger to fend off protection racketeers, Annie is adopted by a no-goodnik who wants to bump her off for insurance money -- and makes them interesting to read from beginning to end. The more fanciful side of Gray's creative genius also flowers as he introduces two of his best-known supporting players, the "omnipotent" Mr. Am (think a multi-million-year-old Santa Claus... with willing slaves) and the slithery Asp. Mr. Am would appear only infrequently in the future, and it's probably a good thing, as he basically possesses Godlike powers (or at least something close to infinite wisdom). Had he been used too often, he would have undercut the strip in the same manner that the all-powerful genie Shazzan cut short the plots in the Hanna-Barbera cartoon of the same name. The Asp is much more of a "keeper," of course, a more believable (and hence far creepier) "unsavory ally" for "Daddy" Warbucks than the magic-mongering giant Punjab. The Asp is sort of a sinister, Asiatic Cadbury, apparently possessing immense strength (e.g., handling huge portraits by holding one corner with two hands) and, no doubt, many other hidden abilities that we won't get to see until they are needed (or until The Asp regales Annie with tales of his previous service to Sir Ruddy Blighter).
Gray seems to have another potential fixture character in the person of Arunah Blade, the aged, proud occupant of a "haunted" house who apparently can commune with the spirit world and displays some of the traits of a master psychologist as he helps thwart the plans of con-artists Brittlewit and Blabble, the dastards behind the insurance plot. We are led to the brink of believing that the failures of many attempts to "off" Annie owe something to the timely intervention of ghosts (and yes, I did have something of an issue with that -- surprised, Joe?), but Blade's manipulation of the villains is what is most memorable here. I don't believe that Blade ever appeared again, however, which seems a shame. Here, Gray is definitely paralleling his friend Chester Gould in terms of playing "one-and-done" with a character who could have contributed to any number of additional stories.
In his introduction, Jeet Heer makes much of the darker tone of ANNIE during this period and speculates that Gray was (1) reacting to the increasingly dangerous world at large plus what, to him, was a disaster in the reelection of FDR, and (2) trying to compete with DICK TRACY's more violent aesthetic. This reasoning seems sound to me, though, despite the upped body count in these stories, the creepiest moment by far has nothing at all to do with violence or death. International criminal Boris Sirob and his two compadres pay for attempting to kill "Daddy" and extort riches from Mr. Am by turning into "man-apes" after getting a whiff of some mysterious, ancient substance that Am tricks them into investigating. There's a definite Raiders of the Lost Ark vibe going on here, but I'd guess that Sirob et al. would have preferred to have had their faces melted off than to have been left to live out mindless lives in the remote jungle.
Heer also includes a good discussion of the Western Sunday strip LITTLE JOE, which bore the signatures of Gray's assistants Ed and Robert Leffingwell but also featured plenty of direct input from Gray, especially in the 1930s and 1940s. The strip, which lasted until the early 1970s -- long after its "modern old-fashioned Western setting" had become almost as antiquated as the West featured in early silent movies -- was one of the best serious Western strips not based on "prepackaged" characters. I'd certainly like to see more of it, just as I'd like to see the run of the humorous Paul Murry and Dick Huemer strip BUCK O'RUE. Someone in Europe is working on the latter; perhaps IDW and Fantagraphics can pool their resources to put two strip collections into a single volume?? We kin only hope, pardner.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
THE BEST (AND REST) OF KIMBA, Episode 29: "The Nightmare Narcissus"
Things looked dicey for a while there insofar as a Kimba posting this week was concerned, but the damage from Irene was less than expected, and the power outages were limited to a few seconds at a time. So I'm back with the last posting before the academic year begins... which, ironically enough, is about an episode in which the forces of unnatural nature threaten Kimba's kingdom.
The old OVERSTREET COMIC BOOK PRICE GUIDE listings would have flagged "The Nightmare Narcissus" as "drug use motif." Oddly enough, the jungle animals' falling victim to the effects of the mind-altering scent of a monster plant isn't the creepiest aspect of this tale, not by a long shot. That particular palm goes, petals down, to the completely bizarre appearance of the giant narcissus, which looks nothing like a true narcissus but instead could give Audrey her/itself a stiff challenge in the "comically horrible" sweepstakes, with its cackling, ravenous mouth and poofy lips. Since the plant turns out to be the product of human genetic engineering, besting it would seem to be an ideal place for Roger Ranger to lend a helping hand (as opposed to the somewhat contrived way in which he has served a deus ex machina purpose in several other eps). What I like about the ep is the fact that Kimba and friends ultimately rely on their own efforts, their native wits, and a slice or two of good fortune to get the job done.
The opening "under the influence" scenes just go on and on... and we'll be getting more of them later in the episode. Normally, I'd knock these as excessive filler, but they do perform a service, setting the tale's decidedly creepy tone. The "scary Kimba" we see here has clearly lost his wits and so isn't quite as frightening as, say, the "newly carnivorous Kimba" seen in the nightmare sequence in "The Insect Invasion." But he's certainly disturbing enough.
This is Sniffer's biggest role by far. The snuffling sage (with yet another different voice, this one a slightly "lunkish" one by Gilbert Mack) gets the distinct honor of accompanying Kimba to the first encounter with the narcissus, and his reason for doing so is entirely believable. I'm not sure what kind of animal Sniffer is; he makes reference to a "dogcatcher" later on, but he doesn't look anything like a wild dog, much less a domesticated one. Perhaps he was genetically engineered, too? During the opening sequence, watch for a brief "fourth wall" moment when the addled Sniffer literally breaks through the background at one point.
Kimba and Sniffer have good fortune to thank for their escaping the first narcissus, but Kimba quickly shifts into proactive mode once he learns of the sinister mission of visiting evil scientist Dr. Mendel Spees (Ray Owens). BEST... VILLAIN'S NAME... EVER!! Sorry to say, that's the best thing that the good/bad Doctor has going for him. His characterization will turn out to be a bit of a train wreck before all is said and done, so his inexplicably driving his jeep over a cliff and crashing is a foreshadowing of sorts. Evidently, Dr. Spees didn't have the same advance scouting that Professor Madcap of "The Flying Tiger" enjoyed, so he doesn't know anything about Kimba or his kingdom (though he is another human who isn't fazed by Kimba's ability to speak). Not that it would have mattered much if he had.
Kimba's assault on Dr. Spees -- complete with the strangely cartoony "turning red all over" bit -- is vicious enough as it is, but it was actually toned down by the Titan crew. In the original script, Kimba responded to Roger's intervention by threatening to hurt his longtime friend if he got too close. By contrast, the dealings with Professor Madcap now seem like a reasonable palavar over a polished conference table. The big difference, I think, is that Madcap sought Kimba out and asked him if he wanted wings, whereas Spees goes the "lab rat" route.
Thanks to Spees' dumb-as-dirt revelation about the narcissus seed, the animals get a chance to seek out the second narcissus before it grows enough to find them. We still wind up getting yet another long "under the influence" scene, though Kimba, given fair warning this time, uses force of will to fight off the deadly scent. Seeing as how Claw was able to decimate the non-drugged, Kimba-less jungle population in "Gypsy's Purple Potion," Kimba's mass beatdown here loses at least some of its ability to impress, but perhaps Kimba deserves extra credit for having to overcome the effects of the narcissus on his subjects. We know that Spees must have been mightily impressed, because he does a completely un-telegraphed 180 ("Good has triumphed over evil... OH, THOSE POOR ANIMALS!") in a rather ham-handed effort to turn him into a Madcap-figure of sorts. It doesn't work, nor does it deserve to.
I really appreciate the idea that the animals discover and exploit the secret of static electricity for themselves, as opposed to having Roger play Mr. Whoopee. Kimba doesn't have any real reason to feel sheepish when Roger gives the more technical expo after the fact. Besides, Dan'l had already discovered a way to protect the animals from the scent, otherwise the animals wouldn't have been able to safely get close enough to the plant in order to find out the plant's weakness. Kimba also got plenty of aid when he physically attacked the flower in order to distract it from discovering "where's the rub." So, despite Kimba's quick insight, this truly was a team triumph.
Spees' revelation that he works for "the Reds" leads me to believe that the "enemy troops" he'd wanted to attack with the narcissus were nothing less than our troops in Vietnam at the time. This political affiliation might also help explain Spees' schizoid behavior; after all, he's used to cogitating in "doublethink."
Overall, just an OK episode, but hang on: we're ramping up to another fairly lengthy stretch which includes a number of classic or near-classic efforts.
Up next: Episode 30, "Adventure in the City."
The old OVERSTREET COMIC BOOK PRICE GUIDE listings would have flagged "The Nightmare Narcissus" as "drug use motif." Oddly enough, the jungle animals' falling victim to the effects of the mind-altering scent of a monster plant isn't the creepiest aspect of this tale, not by a long shot. That particular palm goes, petals down, to the completely bizarre appearance of the giant narcissus, which looks nothing like a true narcissus but instead could give Audrey her/itself a stiff challenge in the "comically horrible" sweepstakes, with its cackling, ravenous mouth and poofy lips. Since the plant turns out to be the product of human genetic engineering, besting it would seem to be an ideal place for Roger Ranger to lend a helping hand (as opposed to the somewhat contrived way in which he has served a deus ex machina purpose in several other eps). What I like about the ep is the fact that Kimba and friends ultimately rely on their own efforts, their native wits, and a slice or two of good fortune to get the job done.
The opening "under the influence" scenes just go on and on... and we'll be getting more of them later in the episode. Normally, I'd knock these as excessive filler, but they do perform a service, setting the tale's decidedly creepy tone. The "scary Kimba" we see here has clearly lost his wits and so isn't quite as frightening as, say, the "newly carnivorous Kimba" seen in the nightmare sequence in "The Insect Invasion." But he's certainly disturbing enough.
This is Sniffer's biggest role by far. The snuffling sage (with yet another different voice, this one a slightly "lunkish" one by Gilbert Mack) gets the distinct honor of accompanying Kimba to the first encounter with the narcissus, and his reason for doing so is entirely believable. I'm not sure what kind of animal Sniffer is; he makes reference to a "dogcatcher" later on, but he doesn't look anything like a wild dog, much less a domesticated one. Perhaps he was genetically engineered, too? During the opening sequence, watch for a brief "fourth wall" moment when the addled Sniffer literally breaks through the background at one point.
Kimba and Sniffer have good fortune to thank for their escaping the first narcissus, but Kimba quickly shifts into proactive mode once he learns of the sinister mission of visiting evil scientist Dr. Mendel Spees (Ray Owens). BEST... VILLAIN'S NAME... EVER!! Sorry to say, that's the best thing that the good/bad Doctor has going for him. His characterization will turn out to be a bit of a train wreck before all is said and done, so his inexplicably driving his jeep over a cliff and crashing is a foreshadowing of sorts. Evidently, Dr. Spees didn't have the same advance scouting that Professor Madcap of "The Flying Tiger" enjoyed, so he doesn't know anything about Kimba or his kingdom (though he is another human who isn't fazed by Kimba's ability to speak). Not that it would have mattered much if he had.
Kimba's assault on Dr. Spees -- complete with the strangely cartoony "turning red all over" bit -- is vicious enough as it is, but it was actually toned down by the Titan crew. In the original script, Kimba responded to Roger's intervention by threatening to hurt his longtime friend if he got too close. By contrast, the dealings with Professor Madcap now seem like a reasonable palavar over a polished conference table. The big difference, I think, is that Madcap sought Kimba out and asked him if he wanted wings, whereas Spees goes the "lab rat" route.
Thanks to Spees' dumb-as-dirt revelation about the narcissus seed, the animals get a chance to seek out the second narcissus before it grows enough to find them. We still wind up getting yet another long "under the influence" scene, though Kimba, given fair warning this time, uses force of will to fight off the deadly scent. Seeing as how Claw was able to decimate the non-drugged, Kimba-less jungle population in "Gypsy's Purple Potion," Kimba's mass beatdown here loses at least some of its ability to impress, but perhaps Kimba deserves extra credit for having to overcome the effects of the narcissus on his subjects. We know that Spees must have been mightily impressed, because he does a completely un-telegraphed 180 ("Good has triumphed over evil... OH, THOSE POOR ANIMALS!") in a rather ham-handed effort to turn him into a Madcap-figure of sorts. It doesn't work, nor does it deserve to.
I really appreciate the idea that the animals discover and exploit the secret of static electricity for themselves, as opposed to having Roger play Mr. Whoopee. Kimba doesn't have any real reason to feel sheepish when Roger gives the more technical expo after the fact. Besides, Dan'l had already discovered a way to protect the animals from the scent, otherwise the animals wouldn't have been able to safely get close enough to the plant in order to find out the plant's weakness. Kimba also got plenty of aid when he physically attacked the flower in order to distract it from discovering "where's the rub." So, despite Kimba's quick insight, this truly was a team triumph.
Spees' revelation that he works for "the Reds" leads me to believe that the "enemy troops" he'd wanted to attack with the narcissus were nothing less than our troops in Vietnam at the time. This political affiliation might also help explain Spees' schizoid behavior; after all, he's used to cogitating in "doublethink."
Overall, just an OK episode, but hang on: we're ramping up to another fairly lengthy stretch which includes a number of classic or near-classic efforts.
Up next: Episode 30, "Adventure in the City."
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Hatch-Down-Battening Update
Irene is coming and we're hoping for the best, but expecting the worst. Stevenson has already cancelled opening-day classes on Monday; let's hope that's the extent of the disruption. As for losing power, we've got our fingers crossed, but also have an arsenal of lanterns, flashlights, and such at the ready. If you have to deal with this, good luck and be careful!
Book* Review: HARRY THE K: THE REMARKABLE LIFE OF HARRY KALAS by Randy Miller (Running Press, 2010)
* Of the electronic persuasion, that is. This is the first book that I've purchased and read on my recently acquired Kindle. Nicky has had one for some time, but, occasional technophobe and full-time nickle-nurser that I am, it took some persuading on her part -- along with a fall in the device's price, of course -- before I was willing to take the plunge. By that time, there was an ulterior motive, as well. Some of you know that I've been working on a book -- a history of the NCAA Basketball Tournament -- since some time between the date of the Earth's cooling and the good Dr. Naismith's finalization of the rules. At least, it seems that long sometimes. In any event, after trying to place the book with several publishers but having no success, I've decided to go the e-route and publish it to Amazon in Kindle-ready format (in parts, to be sure -- it's MUCH too long to be published as a single e-entity). In order to do this the right way, I wanted to make sure that I understood Kindle formatting and other issues related to electronic publication. Getting one of the things seemed like a logical way to start.
Oh, the review... This is a warts-and-all biography of the much-loved Phillies' radio and TV broadcaster, presented with honesty but no sense whatsoever of score-settling. We learn of Kalas' generosity to fans, colleagues, and the wider community, but also learn the details of his drinking, his womanizing, and a nasty feud with fellow Phillie broadcaster Chris Wheeler. I had heard about the latter from afar, having moved away from the Philadelphia area by that time, but it appears to have been far more unpleasant than I'd suspected. Author Miller is a newspaper reporter, and it shows sometimes to a rather troubling degree; the start of each chapter reads very much like the start of a brand-new column, with characters being reintroduced to us on a constant basis. This made the narrative flow of the book rather awkward. There are a number of typos and factual errors, as well. Still, there is much to enjoy here, especially for a Phillies' fan.
I distinctly recall watching the TV broadcast of the opening of Veterans Stadium in 1971, which was also the first time that Harry appeared as a Phillies' broadcaster. I subsequently spent more than a little time during my teenage years in the audiovisual company of Harry, Richie "Whitey" Ashburn, Andy Musser, Wheeler, and, later, a just-learning-the-ropes Tim McCarver -- easily, the best baseball broadcast team that I ever heard. Harry's career, of course, was much more diverse than most, as he also did voiceovers for NFL Films, NFL game broadcasts, various national and local commercials, Philadelphia Big Five basketball, and even Notre Dame basketball and (replay) football broadcasts. After missing a chance to broadcast the 1980 World Series due to network restrictions, a much older, clearly-flagging Harry finally cashed in by getting to do the 2008 Fall Classic. He died the following Spring, in the broadcast booth before a game in Washington. He will always be missed.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)