It was the comic world that ruled geek news this last week as San Diego Comic Con was in full swing. Major players from all realms of nerdom gathered to share their latest updates. With such a huge event, I can’t possibly cover all the announcements, but here’s a full recap for your convenience.
Out of all the videos released at this year’s Comic Con, the trailer for The Last Airbender: Legend of Korra was one of the most anticipated (see above). The brand new video gives just over a minute’s look at the world of Avatar some 70 years after Aang.
“I think sadness is really interesting…”
– Miranda July
I understand Miranda July’s new movie The Future, completely. I don’t think I can explain it, except to say that each individual scene, even single lines of dialogue, can inspire an entire conversation.
Writer/director July crafts the story of Sophie (July) and Jason (Hamish Linklater), a couple planning on adopting a cat they rescued. In the time it will take for the shelter to heal Paw-Paw (voice of July and yes, the cat narrates), Sophie and Jason plan to make the most of their remaining time without commitment. Sophie cancels the internet, yet still plans to record dances that she’ll upload at Wi-Fi enabled cafes. Jason explores a career in environmentalism.
Yet those are not the themes I focused on. The unique voice of July is that she will give Jason the power to freeze time, or the characters will contemplate the end, as in the big end. The story of Jason and Sophie’s relationship progresses to a conclusion, but it’s the abstract steps along the way that evoke thought and feeling.
At the Los Angeles Film Festival, July met me in the lobby of the J.W. Marriot downtown while her film played at the Regal Cinemas. She would return to the theater for an audience Q&A, but while a new audience experienced The Future, July sat in an outdoor bar, magenta stockings shining in the sun, and analyzed her film with me.
The book, which is written by Morello and features art from Shepard Fairey and Scott Hepburn, will be released by Dark Horse later this year
Influenced by the ladies featured on SuicideGirls.com, Morello’s title character is a strong female lead in a future world where the rich and powerful rule with an iron fist and the powerless are left with the scraps.
Morello, usually known for guitar innovations, has also added a new riff to his comic book set. With each issue, he will release a new track that fans will be able to download that will serve as the soundtrack to the story.
The book was unveiled last weekend at San Diego Comic Con where Morello sat down with SuicideGirls.com to give an insight into his passion for comics and what to expect when Orchid debuts.
WHY DO YOU LOVE IT?: It’s chock full of news and resources that I never would have known about otherwise. Best recent discovery? The incident which led to the creation of the SlutWalk. How fucking cool is that? Also, Morgan (the group owner and moderator) is fair when dealing with problem posters. She gives everyone a chance, but doesn’t hesitate to boot them if they’re trolls. That keeps the headdesk-inducing threads to a minimum.
DISCUSSION TIP: You have the right to your opinion, and everyone else has the right to respond to it, even if it’s to disagree.
MOST HEATED DISCUSSION THREAD: A lot of the threads get passionate, but I think the most consistently active one is the Rantspace rant thread. Not only is it eye-opening, but it’s like a support group within the group. I find it very cathartic to both read and post in that thread.
WHO’S WELCOME TO JOIN?: Anyone interested in learning about promoting equality of any sort, not just gender-equality.
“The nature of all drama is really conflict.”
– Ron Marz
Ron Marz has been a comic book writer for many years, with a long list of credits at Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, Top Cow and just about every other comics company there is. His career has notably included a long run on Green Lantern.
In recent years some of his best work has been for Top Cow, where he’s been writing the company’s flagship comic Witchblade. He transformed the tile from a comic that was known in its early years for T&A into a complex superhero fantasy story that has led to Marz writing a series of miniseries (First Born and Artifacts) and ongoing series (Magdalena) for the company.
Marz is leaving the series with issue #150, and is busy writing a Green Lantern one shot and the Voodoo series coming from DC this fall. His big project this summer though is Shinku, a bloody horror story set in Japan that involves samurai and vampires, and is just as cool as it sounds.
