DC Comics Shipping from Lunar Distributors for October 19, 2021

DC COMICS:

Batman #115 (Cover A Jorge Jimenez) (Fear State), $4.99
Batman #115 (Cover B Jorge Molina Card Stock Variant) ( Fear State), $5.99
Batman #115 (Cover C Arist Deyn Card Stock Variant)(Fear State), AR
Batman Catwoman #8 (Of 12) (Cover A Clay Mann), $4.99
Batman Catwoman #8 (Of 12) (Cover B Jim Lee & Scott Williams), $4.99
Batman Catwoman #8 (Of 12) (Cover C Travis Charest), $4.99
Batman Last Knight On Earth TP, $24.99
Batman Secret Files Peacekeeper-01 #1 (One Shot) (Cover A Rafael Sarmento) (Fear State), $4.99
Batman Secret Files Peacekeeper-01 #1 (One Shot) (Cover B Tyler Kirkham Card Stock Variant) (Fear State), $5.99
Batman Secret Files Peacekeeper-01 #1 (One Shot) (Cover C Rafael Sarmento Card Stock Variant) (Fear State), AR
Batman Vs Bigby A Wolf In Gotham #2 (Of 6) (Cover A Yanick Paquette), $3.99
Batman Vs Bigby A Wolf In Gotham #2 (Of 6) (Cover B Brian Level & Jay Leisten Card Stock Variant), $4.99
Black Manta #2 (Of 6)(Cover A Valentine De Landro), $3.99
Black Manta #2 (Of 6)(Cover B Sanford Greene Card Stock Variant), $4.99
Catwoman #36 (Cover A Yanick Paquette) (Fear State), $3.99
Catwoman #36 (Cover B Jenny Frison Card Stock Variant) (Fear State), $4.99
Catwoman Lonely City #1 (Of 4) (Cover A Cliff Chiang), $6.99
Catwoman Lonely City #1 (Of 4) (Cover B Cliff Chiang), $6.99
Catwoman Lonely City #1 (Of 4) (Cover C Jock), AR
Diana Princess Of The Amazons Wonder Woman Day Special Edition #1 (One Shot), AR
Dollhouse Family TP, $17.99
Far Sector TP, $29.99
Flash #775 (Cover A Brandon Peterson), $4.99
Flash #775 (Cover B Jorge Corona Card Stock Variant), $5.99
Green Lantern #7 (Cover A Bernard Chang), $4.99
Green Lantern #7 (Cover B Marco Santucci Card Stock Variant), $5.99
Harley Quinn The Animated Series The Eat Bang Kill Tour #1 (Of 6) (2nd Printing Max Sarin Cover), $3.99
Legends Of The Dark Knight #6 (Cover A Dike Ruan), $3.99
Legends Of The Dark Knight #6 (Cover B Becky Cloonan Card Stock Variant), $4.99
Legends Of The Dark Knight #6 (Cover C Jorge Fornes Card Stock Variant), AR
Nightwing #85 (Cover A Bruno Redondo) (Fear State), $3.99
Nightwing #85 (Cover B Jamal Campbell Card Stock Variant) (Fear State), $4.99
Nightwing #85 (Cover C Bruno Redondo Sketch Card Stock Variant) (Fear State), AR
Nubia And The Amazons #1 (Of 6) (Cover A Alitha Martinez), $3.99
Nubia And The Amazons #1 (Of 6) (Cover B Maika Sozo Card Stock Variant), $4.99
Nubia And The Amazons #1 (Of 6) (Cover D Joshua Sway Swaby Card Stock Variant), $4.99
Refrigerator Full Of Heads #1 (Of 6) (Cover A Sam Wolfe Connelly), $3.99
Refrigerator Full Of Heads #1 (Of 6) (Cover B Reiko Murakami Card Stock Variant), $4.99
Scooby-Doo Where Are You #112 (Cover A Derek Fridolfs), $2.99
Shazam #4 (Of 4) (Cover A Clayton Henry), $3.99
Shazam #4 (Of 4) (Cover B Juni Ba Card Stock Variant), $4.99
Suicide Squad #8 (Cover A Eduardo Pansica), $3.99
Suicide Squad #8 (Cover B Gerald Parel Card Stock Variant), $4.99
Suicide Squad King Shark #2 (Of 6) (Cover A Trevor Hairsine), $3.99
Suicide Squad King Shark #2 (Of 6) (Cover B Jorge Molina Card Stock Variant), $4.99
Superman Son Of Kal-El #4 (Cover A John Timms), $3.99
Superman Son Of Kal-El #4 (Cover B InHyuk Lee Card Stock Variant), $4.99
Wonder Woman 2016 #1 Wonder Woman Day Special Edition #1 (One Shot), AR
Wonder Woman Tempest Tossed Wonder Woman Day Special Edition #1 (One Shot), AR

--------------

Review: "HEARTS AND MINDS" Still Condemns with Power

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 61 of 2021 (No. 1799) by Leroy Douresseaux

Hearts and Minds (1974)
Running time:  112 minutes (1 hour, 52 minutes)
MPAA – R
DIRECTOR:  Peter Davis
PRODUCERS:  Peter Davis and Bert Schneider
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Richard Pearce
EDITORS:  Lynzee Klingman and Susan Martin
Academy Award winner

DOCUMENTARY – War, Politics

[The recent ignominious end of the “War in Afghanistan” (October 7, 2001 to August 30, 2021) got me to thinking about America's involvement in Vietnam decades ago because … you know … people never learn and they never change.  In military conflicts, if you run on up in there, you gonna eventually run on up outta there.  So anyway, I remembered the gold standard in theatrical Vietnam documentary films, Hearts and Minds, and it was time to see it again.]

Starring:  Captain Randy Floyd, Sgt. William Marshall, Lt. George Coker, George Bidault, Father Chan Tin, Daniel Ellsberg, David Emerson, Mary Cochran Emerson, Senator J.W. Fulbright, Sec. Clark Gifford, Corporal Stan Holder, Mui Duc Giang, Walt Rostow, Vu Duc Vinh, Vu Thi Hue, Vu Thri To, Gen. William Westmoreland, and Richard Nixon, John F. Kennedy, and Lyndon B. Johnson

Hearts and Minds is a 1974 documentary film directed by Peter Davis.  It is an antiwar movie that examines the Vietnam War (1955 to 1975) and confronts the United States' involvement in the civil war within the Southeast Asian nation of Vietnam.  The film's title, Hearts and Minds, is based on the following quote from U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson:  “the ultimate victory will depend on the hearts and minds of the people who actually live out there.”  Hearts and Minds won the Oscar for “Best Documentary, Features” at the 47th Academy Awards, which were presented in 1975.

During the time of its release, critics of Hearts and Minds complained that the film was two one-sided, but from the beginning, the film's stated and obvious premise was that the United States should not have been involved Vietnam and in the strife between the governments of North Vietnam and South Vietnam.  Director Peter Davis recounts the history of the Vietnam War by examining the history and attitudes of the opposing sides of the war, and he does this by interviewing government officials and military leadership and personnel from both sides of conflict.  He also uses archival news footage, specifically featuring the U.S. Presidents whose actions started, sustained, and/or exacerbated the conflict and violence that marked the Vietnam War.

It is in that way that Davis presents what I see as the film's key theme:  American attitudes and goals were the reason that a Vietnamese civil war became an American-driven Vietnam War.  After World War II, the leadership of the U.S., both government and military, decided to make the world in its image.  American's imperial ambitions had been long-simmering, seeing a number of nations as rivals or obstacles, especially the Soviet Union and China, the faces of “international communism.”  Such imperialism found a proxy war in the struggle between communist North Vietnamese and its South Vietnamese allies, the Viet Cong,against South Vietnam (or the State of Vietnam).

Hearts and Minds emphasizes how the the United States helped to create the bloody conflict with Vietnam and how it ultimately prolonged the struggle.  In interviews with such people as General William Westmoreland, the American commander of military operations in the Vietnam War during its peak period from 1964 to 1968, not only does the self-righteous militarism of the U.S. reveal itself, but also American' racist attitudes about the Vietnamese people.

This militarism and racism is also exemplified in another one of the film's interview subjects, American prison of war (POW), U.S. Navy pilot, Lt. George Coker.  The film includes footage of Coker making public speeches after his release from six-and-a-half years in North Vietnamese captivity.  Coker's racism and jingoism are repulsive, which, to me, are obviously the result of his upbringing (brainwashing) and military training.  However, I'm not sure that it was a good choice to include him in Hearts and Minds, as the film's detractors have used Coker's status as a POW to criticize the film as being “too one-sided” and anti-war propaganda.  One could always say that the attitudes Coker reveals in his return to the U.S. are, to some extent, the result of the degradation he experienced as a POW.

That aside, what makes Hearts and Minds one of the greatest American documentary films of all time (if not the greatest) is director Peter Davis' willingness to give voice to the Vietnamese people through interviews and film footage.  One of Hearts and Minds' most shocking and controversial sequences shows the funeral of a South Vietnamese soldier.  His grieving family includes a sobbing woman (his mother?) who has to be restrained from climbing into the grave after his coffin is lowered into the ground.  The cries of a grieving boy, perhaps his son, are like that of a wounded animal.  I first saw Hearts and Minds a few years ago on TV, and that scene stays with me, even as I write this.

Americans sometimes remember how many Americans died in the Vietnam War (over 58,000), but almost three-and-a-half million Vietnamese civilians and soldiers died during the war (according to numbers provided by Vietnam in 1995).  An example of the wanton death and destruction is personified in a North Vietnamese farmer who loses his eight-year-old daughter and his three-year-old son because of an American bombing campaign.  His anger and grief, especially at the death of his daughter who was killed while feeding pigs (all of which apparently lived), encapsulates the wrongness of American involvement in Vietnam.

Two other interviews of American servicemen stand out to me.  First, Sgt. William Marshall, an African-American from Detroit, offers a bit of levity in the film by the way in which he describes his experiences.  However, he also condemns Americans, demanding that they witness in his war injuries a guilt from which we may not turn away.

The other is Hearts and Minds' concluding interview, which features US Vietnam veteran, U.S. Navy pilot, Captain Randy Floyd.  One of his statements summons up the feckless relationship that Americans have with their militarist and imperialist government.  Floyd says, “We've all tried very hard to escape what we have learned in Vietnam.  I think Americans have worked extremely hard not to see the criminality that their officials and their policy makers exhibited.”

With those words, Hearts and Minds makes itself both timely and timeless, although the American “Global War on Terror” of the twenty-first century also helped to keep this film timely.  It is left up to academics, film historians, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' (AMPAS) “Academy Film Archive,” and the “National Film Registry” to save Hearts and Minds from being entirely forgotten.  Still, we movie fans, or at least some us, must make an effort to bring Hearts and Minds back into prominence.  America has need of this work of art and of this lesson in history.

10 of 10

Sunday, October 17, 2021


NOTES:
1975 Academy Awards, USA:  1 win for “Best Documentary, Features” (Peter Davis and Bert Schneider)

1975 Golden Globes, USA:  1 nomination: “Best Documentary Film”

2018 National Film Preservation Board, USA:  “National Film Registry”


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

----------------------

Negromancer News Bits and Bites from October 10th to 16th, 2021 -- Update #18

by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

You can support Leroy via Paypal or on Patreon:

ENTERTAINMENT AND CULTURE NEWS:

DC COMICS - From Variety:  See previews, performances, and personalities from upcoming films and TV, live-action and animated, based on DC Comics characters at DC FanDome 2021.

TRANS/NETFLIX - From THR:  Australian comedian, Hannah Gadsby, tears into Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos in the ongoing controversy over Dave Chappelle's most recent Netflix special, "The Closer."  Chappelle mocked gender identities in the special.

From THR:   In the ongoing controversy over Dave Chappelle's "The Closer" stand-up special, Netflix has fired an employee for leaking confidential financial data to "Bloomberg", resulting in an article published on Oct. 13 that detailed the cost ($24.1 million) of The Closer.

---------------

SPORTS/BLM - From TheAtlantic:   Is the NFL's Jon Gruden scandal a sign that the league has a problem with bigotry among its coaches, team executives, and owners? Jemele Hill of "The Atlantic" discusses.

MOVIES - From Deadline: Oscar-winner Tommy Lee Jones is replacing Oscar-nominee Harrison Ford in Amazon's "The Burial," which will also star Oscar-winner Jamie Foxx.

MOVIES - From Deadline:  Jensen Ackles ("Supernatural," "The Boys") joins the ensemble cast of the Western, "Rust," which already includes Alec Baldwin as an actor and producer.

BUSINESS - From Deadline:   Unless an agreement is reached with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers in the coming days, the 60,000 film and TV workers of the IATSE (International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees) will go on strike on Monday, Oct. 18, at 12:01 a.m. PDT.

NETFLIX - From THR:   Squid Game drew 111 million viewers in its first month on the platform, per internal Netflix estimates, becoming the biggest launch in the streaming giant’s history.

From THR:    "Squid Game" creator, Hwang Dong-hyuk, talks Season 2.

---------------------------

TRAILERS-MOVIES - From ETCanada:  Paramount Pictures and Spyglass Media Group have released a trailer for its relaunch of the "Scream" franchise with a fifth film. The film is due Jan. 14, 2022.

TELEVISION - From EW: AMC has greenlit a new spinoff of "The Walking Dead."  The anthology series, "Tales of the Walking Dead" will debut on AMC and streaming AMC+ next summer.

CELEBRITY - From TimesUK:  Rumors say that Prince William sees his uncle, Prince Andrew, as a threat to the British royal family because of Andrew's connection to the late pedophile, Jeffrey Epstein, and because of his ongoing legal battles with Virginia Giuffre.  Giuffre says that Prince Andrew raped her when she was a teenager.

AWARDS - From THR:   FX’s "Pose" and "Mayans M.C." and Hulu’s "Love, Victor" were among the winners at Sunday night's 2021 Imagen Awards.  The awards recognize positive portrayals of Latinos in media.

BOX OFFICE - From BoxOfficePro:  The winner of the 10/8 to 10/10/21 weekend box office is the James Bond film, "No Time to Die," with an estimated take of 56 million dollars.

From Deadline:  "No Time to Die" leads the international box office with an estimated gross of 89.54 million dollars. Its total foreign gross to date is 313.3 million.

From Negromancer:  My review of "No Time to Die."

----------------

MOVIES - From BuzzFeed:   Timothy Chalamet shares a first-look at himself as "Willy Wonka" from the film, "Wonka," which is due in 2023.

OSCARS - From Variety:  Husband and wife entertainment mega-couple, Jay-Z and Beyonce, could make Oscar history if both received "Best Original Song" nominations.

MOVIES - From USAToday:  "Best horror movies: 10 thrilling, chilling films to watch for Halloween 2021."

POLITICS/TELEVISION - From Reuters:   How AT&T helped build far-right One America News (OAN).

From RollingStone:  "Fox News and OAN Were Deeper in the Bag for Trump Than Anyone Realized."

OBIT:

From Deadline:   Disney animator, Ruthie Thompson, has died at the age of 111, Sunday, October 10, 2021. She worked an a camera technician, animation checker, or scene planner on many Walt Disney animated films over a four decade period, including "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," "Fantasia," "Mary Poppin," and "The Rescuers."  She was named a "Disney Legend" in 2000.

Comics Review: VAMPIVERSE #2

VAMPIVERSE VOLUME 1 #2
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT

STORY: Thomas Sniegoski and Jeannine Acheson
ART: Daniel Maine
COLORS: Francesca Cittarelli
LETTERS: Taylor Esposito
EDITOR: Matt Idelson
COVER: Madibek Musabekov
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Stephen Segovia; Meghan Hetrick; Maria Sanapo; Daniel Maine; Roberto Castro; Madibek Musabekov; Rachel Hollon (cosplay)
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (October 2021)

Rated Teen+

“The Red Mass” Book 2: “Even More Yous”

Vampirella is a vampire and female superhero created by the late author and science fiction and horror expert, Forrest J Ackerman, and designed by comic book artist, Trina Robbins.  Vampirella first appeared in Vampirella #1 (Sept. 1969), the debut issue of a black and white horror comics magazine from Warren Publishing.  Writer-editor Archie Goodwin changed the character from a hostess of horror comics to a leading character in her own stories.

Vampirella publications were published by Warren into 1983, and after Warren's bankruptcy, Harris Publications obtained the character and published new and reprint Vampirella comic books into the mid-1990s.  In 2010, Dynamite Entertainment obtained the character and has been publishing new Vampirella material since then.

Dynamite's latest Vampirella comic book series is Vampiverse.  The series is written by Thomas Sniegoski and Jeannine Acheson; drawn by Daniel Maine; colored by Francesca Cittarelli; and lettered by Taylor Esposito.  In this new series, a Vampirella from one universe must travel the “Threads of the Fabric” and gather Vampirellas from other universes.  Their goal will be to stop a mysterious force from destroying them and the Creator of all things.

Vampiverse Volume 1 #2 (“Even More Yous”) opens on a world in which its Vampirella was forced to marry Dracula in order to save humanity.  Things only got worse, and this Vampirella became the killer, “Bloodwing.”  After destroying her own world, Bloodwing travels the “Threads of the Fabric” (also known as the “Weave”) seeking the “Book of Prophecy,” personified as an elementary school-age boy called “Book.”

Now, our heroic Vampirella and Book arrive on a world ravaged by the “Chaos Plague.”  There, they meet this world's Vampirella and her sidekick, Prague, both of whom are ready for action.  However, Bloodwing is also coming to this world, and she has a taste for a book.

THE LOWDOWN:  Dynamite Entertainment's marketing department recently began providing me with PDF review copies of some of their titles.  One of them is Vampiverse Volume 1 #2, one of a growing number of Vampirella comic books that I have recently read.

As I've been reading Dynamite Entertainment's comic books over the past few months, I have noticed that some first issues introduce the main series, but are more prologue than story.  With these series, it is in the second issue that the story really kicks off.  I find that to be the case with Vampiverse #2.  Writers Thomas Sniegoski and Jeannine Acheson start this issue by quickly defining Bloodwing and then, they move on to an action-packed story.  I find the characters likable, and I am intrigued by this book chase and Vampirella kill-fest.

Vampiverse's writers have certainly given me a reason to return for more, especially if they can offer a line-up of interesting Vampirellas the way Sonjaversal offers a universe of intriguing alternate Red Sonjas.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Vampirella comics will want to read Vampiverse Volume 1.

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


https://twitter.com/DynamiteComics
https://www.dynamite.com/htmlfiles/
https://www.facebook.com/DynamiteComics/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNOH4PEsl8dyZ2Tj7XUlY7w
https://www.linkedin.com/company/dynamite-entertainment


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

--------------------

Amazon wants me to inform you that the affiliate link below is a PAID AD, but I technically only get paid (eventually) if you click on the affiliate link below AND buy something(s).

Comics Review: VAMPIRELLA VOLUME 5 #24

VAMPIRELLA VOLUME 5 #24
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT

STORY: Christopher Priest
ART: Ergün Gündüz; Chris Graves (flashbacks)
COLORS: Mohan
LETTERS: Willie Schubert
EDITOR: Matt Idelson
COVER: Lucio Parrillo
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Marco Mastrazzo; Shannon Maer; Ergün Gündüz; RB White; Lucio Parrillo; Shannon Maer; Lorraine (cosplay)
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (September 2021)

Rated Teen+

“The Red Mass” Book 3: “The Groom”

Vampirella is a vampire and female superhero created by the late author and science fiction and horror expert, Forrest J Ackerman, and designed by comic book artist, Trina Robbins.  Vampirella first appeared in Vampirella #1 (Sept. 1969), the debut issue of a black and white horror comics magazine from Warren Publishing.  Writer-editor Archie Goodwin changed the character from a hostess of horror comics to a leading character in her own stories.

Vampirella publications were published by Warren into 1983, and after Warren's bankruptcy, Harris Publications obtained the character and published new and reprint Vampirella comic books into the mid-1990s.  In 2010, Dynamite Entertainment obtained the character and has been publishing new Vampirella material since then.

Dynamite's flagship Vampirella comic book series, simply entitled Vampirella, is now in its fifth volume.  Vampirella Volume 5 is written by Christopher Priest; drawn by Ergun Gunduz (and Chris Graves); colored by Mohan; and lettered by Willie Schubert.  The series focuses on a reborn Vampirella who fights the forces of chaos to save humanity.

Vampirella Volume 5 #24 (“The Groom”) offers up the story of seven-year-old Matty.  Vampire cultists want to worship him, and a group of religious fanatics, “The Scarlet Legion,” want to kill him.  Why is Matty's life like this?  Matty carries the “Dracula virus,” and one day, he will become Count Dracula.  All Vampirella wants to do is save him, even if she has to make enemies out of friends to do so.

Twenty years later, FBI Agent Matthias “Matt” Ecsed sees a psychiatrist who doesn't believe that Matt is Dracula – such nonsense.  But “Kauldryn,” a group of preteen vampiri (space vampires), does.  And so does a mysterious man, Shane, the so-called “First Man,” who is on a murderous journey to find Matt … and the virus he carries.

Meanwhile, poor Vampirella finds herself begging “The Oracle” for help in destroying the virus.  The Oracle wonders, however, why he would help a bitch that's been hunting his kind for decades.

THE LOWDOWN:  Dynamite Entertainment's marketing department recently began providing me with PDF review copies of some of their titles.  One of them is Vampirella Volume 5 #24.  It is not only the third issue of this series that I have read, but it is also one of many Vampirella comic books that have engaged my imagination these last few months.

Issue Vampirella #22 intrigued me mainly because I am a fan of writer Christopher Priest, and I did find issue #23 to be more consistent in the flow of the narrative and less all over the place.  It was  funny and deranged, and Priest showed off his gift for sharp dialogue.  Issue #24 is still even more exciting a read.  It's funny, weird and crazy, and really brings this story arc's plot together.  Someone new to the series could start with issue #24 and quickly understand this story arc.  Priest is offering some of his best writing that I have read in awhile.

Two artists draw this issue.  Series regular Ergun Gunduz draws the story set in the present, while Chris Graves tackles the past, specifically the first time that Vampirella meets Matt Ecsed.  I like Ergun's clean line work which fits Priest's wit and humor, and his art looks great under Mohan's sharp coloring.  Graves' art is not as refined, but his storytelling, while also a little raw, does convey the story and this time, Vampirella's desperation.

Issue #23 made me curious about #24, and now, I am ready for #25.  I have high hopes.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Vampirella comics will want to read Vampirella Volume 5.

B+

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


https://twitter.com/DynamiteComics
https://www.dynamite.com/htmlfiles/
https://www.facebook.com/DynamiteComics/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNOH4PEsl8dyZ2Tj7XUlY7w
https://www.linkedin.com/company/dynamite-entertainment


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

-----------------

LAIKA Will Screen Its Films at Oregon Museum of Science & Industry Beginning Oct. 15th

LAIKA Continues 15th Anniversary Celebration With Screenings of All Its Oscar®-Nominated Films and Q&As With Key Filmmakers at the Oregon Museum of Science & Industry From October 15-31

The lauded animation studio will display all its ‘hero’ puppets and some of its most memorable sets from each film at Portland’s world class science museum

HILLSBORO, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--LAIKA, whose five films (Missing Link, Kubo and the Two Strings, The Boxtrolls, ParaNorman, and Coraline) have all received Oscar® nominations for Best Animated Film, will partner with the Oregon Museum of Science & Industry (OMSI) for multiple screenings of all its films as well as filmmaker discussions and a display of puppets and sets this October. For ticket information, please visit HERE.

“We couldn’t be more pleased to be working with a world-class institution like OMSI to share the magic of LAIKA’s filmmaking with our hometown fans”

Last week, LAIKA announced it is currently in production on the animated feature film Wildwood, based on the bestselling novel written by Colin Meloy, lead singer and songwriter for The Decemberists, and illustrated by artist Carson Ellis. LAIKA President & CEO Travis Knight will direct.

LAIKA was awarded a Scientific & Technical Oscar® in 2016 for its innovations in facial animation and won the BAFTA for Kubo and the Two Strings and the Golden Globe for Missing Link. At the heart of every LAIKA film are the artists who meticulously craft every element. Through its display of puppets and sets from all of LAIKA’s Oscar®-nominated films, visitors to OMSI can immerse themselves in LAIKA’s creative process, exploring the production design, sets, props, puppets, costumes, and world-building that have become the studio’s hallmarks. LAIKA films are a triumph of imagination, ingenuity and craftsmanship and have redefined the limits of modern animation. During the two-week engagement, some of the key artists who created each film will engage with visitors in a series of Q&As and showings at OMSI’s Empirical Theater.

“Animation has a unique ability to entertain, educate, and inspire audiences. We feel so fortunate to have LAIKA here in Portland providing us the unique opportunity to spotlight their creative, award-winning films,” said Russ Repp, VP of Retail and Marketing at OMSI. “LAIKA’s work aligns with our mission to inspire curiosity in people of all ages, so we’re delighted to celebrate their 15 years of artistic innovation by hosting this truly special event.”

“We couldn’t be more pleased to be working with a world-class institution like OMSI to share the magic of LAIKA’s filmmaking with our hometown fans,” said David Burke, Chief Marketing Officer MO & SVP, Business Operations at LAIKA. “Our studio has a unique approach to filmmaking, enhancing the artisanal stop-motion technique with technological innovations and through installations like this, fans have a chance to see that artistry up close whilst getting some behind-the-scenes details from our filmmakers.”

LAIKA’s ‘hero’ or main character puppets as well as Moonbeast and the Skeleton (small scale) from Kubo and the Two Strings will be on display alongside several memorable sets, including:

• Coraline’s Other Kitchen with Other Mother/Other Father and Beldam’s Sewing table from Coraline
• Interior of Norman’s Bedroom and Mitch’s van with the gang and Zombie judge from ParaNorman
• Sparky's Market tent and Snatcher’s Truck from The Boxtrolls
• Kubo's market building from Kubo and the Two Strings
• Sir Lionel's apartment and Adelina’s boat cabin from Missing Link

Some of LAIKA’s most notable artists will be on hand for in-person Q&As:

• Friday, October 15: Ollie Jones, Director of Practical Effects
• Saturday, October 16: Production Designer Nelson Lowry
• Sunday, October 17: VFX Supervisor Steve Emerson
• Friday, October 22: ParaNorman and Missing Link writer/director Chris Butler
• Saturday, October 23: Brian McLean, Director of Rapid Prototyping (3D Printing)
• Sunday, October 24: Animation Supervisor Brad Schiff
• Friday, October 29: VFX Supervisor Steve Emerson
• Saturday, October 30: Head of Production/Producer Arianne Sutner

LAIKA FILMOGRAPHY:

MISSING LINK (2019)

Mr. Link, AKA Bigfoot (voiced by Zach Galifianakis), is lonely and believes that famed investigator of myths, Sir Lionel Frost (Hugh Jackman), is the one man who can help. With adventurer Adelina Fortnight (Zoe Saldana), the trio embarks on an epic journey to find Link’s distant relatives in the fabled Shangri-La. Along the way each finds their true identity.

KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS (2016)

An epic action-adventure set in a fantastical Japan. Clever, kindhearted Kubo's (voiced by Art Parkinson of Game of Thrones) relatively quiet existence is upended when he accidentally summons a spirit from his past which storms down from the heavens to enforce an age-old vendetta. Now on the run, Kubo joins forces with Monkey (Academy Award® winner Charlize Theron) and Beetle (Academy Award® winner Matthew McConaughey), and sets out on a thrilling quest to save his family and solve the mystery of his fallen father, the greatest samurai warrior the world has ever known. With the help of his shamisen - a magical musical instrument - Kubo battles gods, monsters, and epic landscapes to unlock the secret of his legacy, reunite his family and fulfill his heroic destiny.

THE BOXTROLLS (2014)

The Boxtrolls, a kind-hearted community of quirky, mischievous, fantastical box-wearing tinkerers, have lovingly raised a human orphan, Eggs (voiced by Isaac Hempstead-Wright of Game of Thrones), since infancy. In the amazing cavernous home they’ve built beneath the cobblestoned streets of Cheesebridge, they transform mechanical junk into magical inventions and live a happy and harmonious existence away from the posh society above that fears them thanks to the scary stories spread by the villainous Archibald Snatcher (Academy Award® winner Ben Kingsley). When Eggs and his Boxtrolls family become increasingly at risk because of Cheesebridge's citizens misunderstanding them, Eggs must venture above ground, “into the light,” where he meets and teams up with another 11-year-old, the fabulously feisty Winnie (Elle Fanning). Together, Eggs and Winnie devise a daring plan to save the Boxtrolls from Snatcher, embarking on an adventure with madcap antics and open hearts which proves that heroes come in all shapes and sizes – even rectangles.

PARANORMAN (2012)

ParaNorman is the thrilling story of 11-year-old Norman Babcock (Kodi Smith-McPhee) who must use his unique ability to see and speak with the dead to save his town from a centuries-old curse. In addition to spooky zombies, he’ll also have to take on mysterious ghosts, wily witches and, worst of all, clueless grown-ups. Now caught in a wild race against time to save his family, friends, and town, Norman must bravely summon up all that makes a hero – courage and compassion – as he finds his paranormal activities pushed to their otherworldly limits. Voice cast includes Anna Kendrick, Leslie Mann and Christopher Mintz-Plasse.

CORALINE (2009)

Coraline Jones (Dakota Fanning) is bored in her new home until she finds a secret door that leads her into a world that’s just like her own…but better! But when this fantastical adventure turns dangerous and her “other” Mother (Teri Hatcher) tries to keep her forever, Coraline must count on all of her resourcefulness, determination, and bravery to get back home – and save her family.

About OMSI:

Founded in 1944, the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) is one of the nation’s leading science museums and an award-winning educational resource for the kid in each of us. As a private, non-profit organization, OMSI does not receive any government funding, but relies on earned and contributed revenue for its operating expenses. OMSI operates the largest museum-based outdoor science education program in the country and provides traveling and community outreach programs that bring science learning opportunities to schools and community organizations throughout Oregon and the region. OMSI is located at 1945 SE Water Avenue, Portland, OR 97214. For general information, call 503.797.4000 or visit omsi.edu. Connect with the museum on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

About LAIKA:

LAIKA, founded in 2005 in Oregon and shaped by the vision of its President & CEO Travis Knight, is a studio that combines a classic commitment to artistry and the cinematic crafts with a delight in innovation and cutting-edge techniques. LAIKA’s five films, Coraline (2009), ParaNorman (2012), The Boxtrolls (2014), Kubo and the Two Strings (2016) and Missing Link (2019) were all nominated for the Academy Award® for Outstanding Animated Feature. Kubo and the Two Strings won the BAFTA Award for Best Animated Film and received an additional Oscar® nomination for Visual Effects. Missing Link was awarded the Golden Globe® for Best Animated Film. LAIKA was also awarded a Scientific and Technology Oscar® plaque in 2016 for its innovation in 3D printing. Recently, the studio announced its first live action feature film based on the action thriller novel Seventeen by screenwriter John Brownlow. Travis Knight will direct LAIKA’s sixth animated feature film Wildwood, which is currently in production and is based on the novel by Colin Meloy, lead singer and songwriter for The Decemberists, and illustrated by Carson Ellis.

-------------------------------

Amazon wants me to inform you that the link below is a PAID AD, but I technically only get paid (eventually) if you click on the ad below AND buy something(s).

Comics Review: The Army of Darkness 1979 #2

THE ARMY OF DARKNESS 1979 VOLUME 1 #2
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT

STORY: Rodney Barnes
ART: Tom Garcia
COLORS: Dinei Ribero
LETTERS: Troy Peteri
EDITOR: Joe Rybandt
COVER: Francesco Mattina
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Arthur Suydam; Junggeun Yoon; Stuart Sayger; Francesco Mattina; Tony Fleecs and Trish Forstner
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (October 2021)

Rated Teen+

Army of Darkness is a 1992 comic horror film and the third film in the Evil Dead film franchise.  The film focuses on the series' lead character, Ash Williams (portrayed by actor Bruce Campbell), as he is trapped in the Middle Ages and battling an army of undead warriors.

In 1992, Dark Horse Comics released a three-issue adaptation of Army of Darkness, and in 2004, Dynamite Entertainment acquired the rights to produce comics based on the Army of Darkness film, featuring Ash as the main character.

The most recent Army of Darkness comic book in the Dynamite catalog is The Army of Darkness 1979.  It is written by Rodney Barnes; drawn by Tom Garcia; colored by Dinei Ribero; and lettered by Troy Peteri.  In the new series, Ash Williams finds himself in late 1970s New York City.  Not only is he fighting his usual adversaries, the Deadites and the Necronomicon, but he is also caught in a turf war between rival street gangs.

The Army of Darkness 1979 Volume 1 #2 opens in Central Park.  Now, in possession of the Necronomicon, The Warlocks and their gang leader are feeling powerful and start the killing.  Meanwhile, over in the South Bronx, Ash has taken up with a local gang, “The Half Deads.”  The plan is for Ash to help them take on the Warlocks and for them to help him recover the Necronomicon.  However, some of the other gangs are suspicious of both The Warlocks and The Half Deads, and the latter will feel that envy and wrath first.

THE LOWDOWN:  Dynamite Entertainment's marketing department recently began providing me with PDF review copies of some of their titles.  One of them is The Army of Darkness 1979 Volume 1 #2, which is the second Army of Darkness comic book I have read since I read the Dark Horse series decades ago.

The Army of Darkness 1979 Volume 1 #1 intrigued me, but it is in this second issue that the story starts to really come together.  Writer Rodney Barnes has brought in a hook or perhaps, thrown a wrench into the storytelling, and it is that everyone is suspicious of everyone's motivations.  The cliffhanger at the end of issue #2 makes me think that series writer Rodney Barnes has more crazy surprises in store.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Army of Darkness comic books and of the franchise, in general, will want to read The Army of Darkness 1979.

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


https://twitter.com/DynamiteComics
https://www.dynamite.com/htmlfiles/
https://www.facebook.com/DynamiteComics/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNOH4PEsl8dyZ2Tj7XUlY7w
https://www.linkedin.com/company/dynamite-entertainment


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

----------------

Amazon wants me to inform you that the affiliate link below is a PAID AD, but I technically only get paid (eventually) if you click on the affiliate link below AND buy something(s).

THE ARMY OF DARKNESS 1979 VOLUME 1 #2
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT

STORY: Rodney Barnes
ART: Tom Garcia
COLORS: Dinei Ribero
LETTERS: Troy Peteri
EDITOR: Joe Rybandt
COVER: Francesco Mattina
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Arthur Suydam; Junggeun Yoon; Stuart Sayger; Francesco Mattina; Tony Fleecs and Trish Forstner
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (October 2021)

Rated Teen+

Army of Darkness is a 1992 comic horror film and the third film in the Evil Dead film franchise.  The film focuses on the series' lead character, Ash Williams (portrayed by actor Bruce Campbell), as he is trapped in the Middle Ages and battling an army of undead warriors.

In 1992, Dark Horse Comics released a three-issue adaptation of Army of Darkness, and in 2004, Dynamite Entertainment acquired the rights to produce comics based on the Army of Darkness film, featuring Ash as the main character.

The most recent Army of Darkness comic book in the Dynamite catalog is The Army of Darkness 1979.  It is written by Rodney Barnes; drawn by Tom Garcia; colored by Dinei Ribero; and lettered by Troy Peteri.  In the new series, Ash Williams finds himself in late 1970s New York City.  Not only is he fighting his usual adversaries, the Deadites and the Necronomicon, but he is also caught in a turf war between rival street gangs.

The Army of Darkness 1979 Volume 1 #2 opens in Central Park.  Now, in possession of the Necronomicon, The Warlocks and their gang leader are feeling powerful and start the killing.  Meanwhile, over in the South Bronx, Ash has taken up with a local gang, “The Half Deads.”  The plan is for Ash to help them take on the Warlocks and for them to help him recover the Necronomicon.  However, some of the other gangs are suspicious of both The Warlocks and The Half Deads, and the latter will feel that envy and wrath first.

THE LOWDOWN:  Dynamite Entertainment's marketing department recently began providing me with PDF review copies of some of their titles.  One of them is The Army of Darkness 1979 Volume 1 #2, which is the second Army of Darkness comic book I have read since I read the Dark Horse series decades ago.

The Army of Darkness 1979 Volume 1 #1 intrigued me, but it is in this second issue that the story starts to really come together.  Writer Rodney Barnes has brought in a hook or perhaps, thrown a wrench into the storytelling, and it is that everyone is suspicious of everyone's motivations.  The cliffhanger at the end of issue #2 makes me think that series writer Rodney Barnes has more crazy surprises in store.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Army of Darkness comic books and of the franchise, in general, will want to read The Army of Darkness 1979.

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


https://twitter.com/DynamiteComics
https://www.dynamite.com/htmlfiles/
https://www.facebook.com/DynamiteComics/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNOH4PEsl8dyZ2Tj7XUlY7w
https://www.linkedin.com/company/dynamite-entertainment


The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

----------------

Amazon wants me to inform you that the affiliate link below is a PAID AD, but I technically only get paid (eventually) if you click on the affiliate link below AND buy something(s).