Neilalien : A Doctor Strange Fansite : A Comic Book Weblog

January 02006 month-to-month sales trending numbers at Pulse [Marvel] [DC, others]

69. DEFENDERS
Jul 05 Defenders #1 (of 5) - 39,510
Aug 05 Defenders #2 (of 5) - 32,853 (-16.8%)
Sep 05 Defenders #3 (of 5) - 30,768 ( -6.3%)
Oct 05 Defenders #4 (of 5) - 29,075 ( -5.5%)
Nov 05 n/a
Dec 05 n/a
Jan 06 Defenders #5 (of 5) - 27,596 ( -5.1%)
6 mnth (-30.2%)

Pretty good numbers, all things considered.

97. X-STATIX PRESENTS DEAD GIRL
Jan 02 X-Force #124 - 45,670
Jan 03 X-Statix #7 - 33,792
Jan 04 X-Statix #18 - 25,246
======
Jan 06 Dead Girl #1 (of 5) - 20,685
2 year (-18.1%)

A disappointing debut given the numbers that X-STATIX used to deliver. Oh well.

The February chart has Dead Girl #2 at 17,400. Neilalien has to wonder if naming the miniseries "Marvel Team-Up: Dr. Strange and Dead Girl" would have been better for sales.

Posted 26 March 02006 - Link

The Charlton-Watchmen Connection: Interview with Alan Moore from Comic Book Artist #9 [TwoMorrows Publishing]
Good chunk of the interview is about Ditko, and Moore's respect for Ditko despite their politics being polar opposites.

David Bowie/Ziggy Stardust comic book [Found Objects LiveJournal Community] [via Technoccult]
From the Rock Fantasy line, 01990. Kate Bush, Ozzy Osbourne, Elton John, Mick Jagger, Batman, and Freddie Mercury also appear.

Posted 21 March 02006 - Link

Neilalien played with audio sharing and Odeo (works great! and the really big form input fields are sooo Web 2.0... ;) ) a bit today, inspired by this Odeo blog entry about hacking an embedded recorder onto one's website. (Well, the embedded thing doesn't look so great to Neilalien's design sensibilities, and it didn't work in all browsers, so he didn't leave it up here on the site.) But you can still leave Neilalien a private voicemail! Let him hear the sexy voices of the Neilalienistas! He knows comics folks can't resist that button above, with its speech balloon...

Posted 20 March 02006 - Link

Office Space remixed with the Superfriends [Windows Media video on Leenks.com] [better results via YouTube search] [via Random Abstract]

Blast From The Past/Neilalien linked it six years ago this month: Superfriends Wassup [YouTube search results]

Posted 20 March 02006 - Link

Marvel Comics: stealing our language [Boing Boing]
A rant that the word "super-hero" isn't Marvel/DC's "crooked word-thieves"' property/trademark, it's a public-domain word that belongs to all of us.

Blast From The Past/Context: "Super-Hero" is a co-owned trademark of Marvel and DC [Briefs On The Outside]
Super Hero Happy Hour comic changes its name, January 02004 [press release on Newsarama]

Speaking of language: Neilalien is amused by this planet's limited language/communication systems and its hopeless attempts to describe him. Please, use the more accurate phrasing of "transcendentally sexual", not "transexual". ;)

Posted 19 March 02006 - Link

Dr. Strange in June 02006 Marvel Solicitations: Ms. Marvel #4 [Comic Book Resources]

MS. MARVEL #4
Written by BRIAN REED
Penciled by ROB DE LA TORRE
Cover by FRANK CHO
GUEST STARRING DR. STRANGE! HOUSE OF M SPIN-OFF VILLAIN RETURNS! Carol Danvers is having one heck of a day. Half the planet's media outlets are camped out in front of her building, a TV crew is in her living room, and the half-crazed time traveling former Sorcerer Supreme known as Warren Traveler has landed in her bedroom! Guest star Doctor Strange does his best to help Ms. Marvel in the latest pulse pounding issue! And check out that cover by Frank Cho! 32 PGS./Rated T+ ...$2.99

If, like Neilalien and many other Dr. Strange fans, you are now scratching your head wondering WTF is "the half-crazed time traveling former Sorcerer Supreme known as Warren Traveler", you'll need to take a peek inside the recent Giant-Sized Ms. Marvel #1 in the shop (save your $5- although two of the included old-school reprints are fun). In the House of M world, Carol Danvers was the uberpopular "Captain Marvel", and she had a longtime nemesis in Sir Warren Traveler, "who once served as the King of England's Sorcerer Supreme". No other details are provided about him or why he's got it in for her- except that magic is one energy type she can't absorb (reminds of Superman's vulnerability to magic), so Traveler is suited to kicking her ass.

Coverage of Giant-Sized Ms. Marvel #1 [full synopsis at UncannyXMen.net] [reviewed at Waiting For Wednesday]

Credit where due: There's still a bit of boring energy blasting, but in the Giant-Sized Ms. Marvel, Traveler also conjures up dragons and charging bulls against the heroine. Brian Reed is the writer of both this and Ms. Marvel #4, so maybe hopefully we'll get some interesting magic with the Doc appearance.

Indies are crowding themselves out of shelf space more than Marvel/DC are; Marvel/DC brand strength dominate Direct Market, not Superheroes per se; need to promote your indie comics to real world- folks outside the DM and photocopies to retailers at order time [Brian Hibbs Tilting At Windmills at Newsarama]

Diamond distributor only has the Direct Market by the short and curlies, not all of Comics [Ninth Art]

Excellent essay vs. perceived call-to-arms to stop buying superheroes they like to save indies they don't because they're indies; indies and self-publishers should take proactive marketing approach vs. hoping that comics fans rescue charity cases [The Low Road good-and-bad grumpy-pants re: Independents' Day Campaign launch]
James Schee comment at Comics Worth Reading: "...I realized that I didn't want to save the comic industry... If I can't approach it in the same way that I approach movies or music -buy what I want, in the format I want, when I want and be reasonably sure I'll like it- then eh."

Teshkeel Comics releases the first Arabic title from Marvel Comics in the Middle East [AME Info] [via Graphic Novelties]
"Spectacular Spider-Man, the first children's magazine to feature the popular character in the region, is now available in 13 countries including the GCC, Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon. The magazine, which caters to pre-teens, hopes to address the lack of quality children's entertainment in the region."

The California Science Center will host the world premiere of the Marvel Super Heroes Science Exhibition later this month; features over 9,000 sq. ft. of neat interactive experiences [IGN] [via WFC News]

Stan Lee, Peter Paul, and the CIA Assassin [video at Google Video] [via Gutters]

Lots of Alan Moore interview goodness out there right now; vents against defanged V For Vendetta movie, Hollywood, DC, comics industry based on gangster ethic and "adolescent approach to violence and sex"; using "comic book" as code for "illiterate" [MTV] [New York Times] [The Beat Part 1; Part 2]
More/Update: Alan Moore: Our greatest graphic novelist [Independent UK] [via Robot Wisdom]

See you this weekend at V For Vendetta, Neilalienistas!

Posted 17 March 02006 - Link

New Avengers: Illuminati six-page preview; out 29 March [Newsarama]

Memory refreshers re: what Stan Lee's up to re: Pow! Entertainment, Who Wants to Be a Superhero? on SciFi Channel [Lee's Pow! Has Big Plans] [Lee Seeks Inner Superhero] [via WFC News]
You can't stop him, you can only hope to contain him.

Quesada says in the past he turned down a "great" Dr. Strange pitch to avoid overextending/diluting Marvel Knights [Ultimate Marvel Panel at New York Comic-Con (CBR)]

Which other Marvel characters would Mike Carey like to tackle? [Comic Book Resources]

Well, I'd expressed a desire to do a Doctor Strange story and I'd still love to do that. Pablo Raimondi and I have talked about doing one forever, but one way or another it hasn't happened. We'd love to do it, in the Ultimate U or mainstream, but we know Strange is tied up at the moment.

Amen, well said: They want us to care about the characters enough to buy the comics, and then they mindlessly kill them off and make fun of us when we complain [Excuse Us For Caring (ICv2)]

Dan Vado, Slave Labor Graphics' President and Publisher, rants vs. Diamond's distributing monopoly, "The Big Two are consuming themselves" [SLG Panel at New York Comic-Con]

Networking in comics; who can succeed where Speakeasy didn't and how; writers need to think more about the visual impact of the text [Steven Grant's Permanent Damage column at CBR]

That great Steranko panel at the New York Comic-Con [Comic Book Resources]

Al Kahn, CEO of 4Kids Entertainment: manga's future in doubt because kids don't read [ICv2 NYCC Graphic Novel Conference coverage]
Don't be fooled by all those kids reading manga... Harry Potter, etc... 4Kids are television/video folks, btw.

Naruto Vol. 9 by Masashi Kishimoto cracked the top 30 on a generalist USA Today book sales list- best ever placement so far by a volume of manga- gulf between North American comics fans and manga is wide [Comics Reporter]

The hottest manga subgenre is guy-guy romance stories written for female audiences [MTV] [via WFC News]
"Yaoi... pronounced 'yow-ee,' is a Japanese acronym for a series of words that can be translated as 'no peak, no climax, no meaning.'"

Great gallery of Treasury Comics [Dr. Strange (Marvel Treasury #6 01975)] [Defenders (Marvel Treasury #16 01978)] [via Mark Evanier with more info]

Project Rooftop: where cartoonists and illustrators bring their costume design skills to redesign superheroes [via Postmodernbarney]

Lex Luther: The Unauthorized Biography reviewed [The Hurting]
Correction: Byrne v. Wolfman re: post-Crisis rich corporate Luthor [The Hurting]
The Luthor hate for Supes isn't about the hair loss [BeaucoupKevin]
Apparently Superman keeps getting his ass kicked in crossovers by Mummra and Skeletor [KillerMovies Forums] [via Progressive Ruin]

Comic Book Diagnosis: Frozen Solid examined [Polite Dissent]

Byrne's Alpha Flight #6- The White Issue- gets the treatment [Dave's Long Box]
Collector Note: Those white-cover books seem hard to find and keep in mint condition too, like with Dr. Strange #180- imperfections stand out, and the cover rots unto transparency, making the inside-cover ad and/or first page visible.

Wow, those modern-day Hostess ads in comics have become much more violent! [Ye Olde Comick Booke Blogge]

Dan Slott revue at Filing Cabinet of the Damned: boo for She-Hulk cheesecake covers, hooray for Thing Robot Pirates

Perfect Vision: Tomine talks Optic Nerve [Comic Book Resources]

Hannibal Tabu's Buy Pile is back; always a smart overview/review and info-overload-preventive of what's come out [now a new column at Comic Book Resources]

Matthew J. Smith is on a mission to raise the profile and legitimacy of comics, starting with naming his twin sons (Clark) Kent and (Steve, from Wonder Woman) Trevor [South Bend Tribune] [via WFC News]
Meanwhile, murder suspects take their aliases from comic books [Graphic Novelties].

Ignore the naysayers, the wives, the accountants! Jersey comic shop rings up annual sales to $600,000 [North Jersey Media Group]

A specialty comic shop can sell Ultimate Avenger DVD circles around Wal-Mart if it's priced right, displayed right, marketed right, and Diamond treats the DM as a legitimate venue for it [retailer at ICv2]

AK Comics' Arab superheroes coming to U.S. in May via Diamond [press release at Yahoo Finance]

Punkymoms share passions for 'comic books, breast feeding, piercings' [KRT Wire] [via WFC News]

That said, here's what Punkymoms are, according to the group's Web site: "the tattooed, pierced, rock-n-rolling, coffee drinking, cigarette smoking, toy collecting, comic book reading, cartoon watching, concert going, creative, macaroni necklace making, hot rod loving, beer drinking, music playing, hair dyeing, fierce loving, breast feeding, attachment parenting, sling wearing mamas."

As in past years, this weblog will likely become a sports widow during March Madness. The Conference (especially Big East) and NCAA Men's Basketball Tournaments have already had, and will continue to have, an altering or adverse effect on when and how Neilalien posts this month. Use the RSS Tickler Feed for website update notification if you need it.

Posted 12 March 02006 - Link

Photos of Howard Hallis' incredible Dr. Strange collection on exhibit at Meltdown Comics in LA

Howard Hallis' Dr. Strange collection on exhibit at Meltdown Comics in LA

Posted 6 March 02006 - Link

Weekly Q&A with Joe Quesada includes Vaughan/Martin Dr. Strange info, sketches showing costume tweaks [Newsarama] [thanks readers!]
Project slated for October or later. Set in current continuity. The costume looks good- more modern dress shirt/jacket and pants, than flowy shirt and sashes. Face sketches look Vincent-Price-ish. No "defining the magic system" and such- just the best Doc story Vaughan's got. Anticipation rising!

Dr. Strange promo by Marcos Martin Dr. Strange sketches by Marcos Martin

Posted 4 March 02006 - Link

Artist Michael Cho emails his BBQ invitation from a while back:

Michael Cho's BBQ invite

Happy Blogday Wishes to some Neilalien all-time faves: Four years in the can for Pop Culture Gadabout, six for LinkMachineGo!

Neilalien knows well that it can be lonely taking on the big popular voices in comics, and being a media critic wanting better in our "This is comics, everyone is improper" world (and it ain't just comics). So, not to risk forsaking his mental-health-, reputation-, and personal-time-preserving attempts at say-it-in-one-and-done, don't-pick-at-the-scab, avoid-the-back-and-forth-quagmire-mud, no-need-for-the-last-word: but Neilalien needs to send a public vibe of support to Precocious Curmudgeon, who still had a little more to say re: the angle of the New York Comic-Con manager owned by the same company that owns the magazine covering the Con getting their Con coverage from the Con consultant. Indeed, friends, the final analysis is left up to the intelligent (and informed- if interests are disclosed) readers- let them decide (as opposed to other interested parties telling them) what reeks of a "con" game and what does not...

Posted 3 March 02006 - Link

New York Comic-Con Refund Policy

Neilalien has absolutely no problem if he ends up looking like a raging crackpot (he calls 'em as he sees 'em) if a Good-For-Comics low refund number is ever announced or leaked- in fact, he hopes for it, he'll be relieved. Although (a) let's define "low", (b) let's get a number that's not fudged or as off as most comicbook-related statistics like our sales numbers, and (c) let's not assume that any ticket-refund number is going to be remotely representative of all of the happy comicbook spending cash (both prepaid and walkup) that showed up at the Con on Saturday, only to be incompetently transformed into spending cash for headache medicine and the videogame shop. We shall see... The NYCC/Reed folks are taking their responsibility-lumps and trying their best to make immediate thorough amends, which is a good thing, and the most important right now.

Posted 2 March 02006 - Link

UPDATED: Publisher Speakeasy Comics has ceased operations [Comics Reporter] [Alan David Doane essay] [Newsarama] [Comic Book Resources] [The Engine] [Permanent Damage] [PopCultureShock]
"CrossGen without the cash"; too much too fast; all about the head honcho's ego; undistinguished (by content type, quality level, or lack of promotion) comics; how tough it is to break the Direct Market's seal.
The Best Laid Plans of Speakeasy Comics [Comics.212.net]

Inked Paul Smith page of Doctor Strange in She-Hulk #8 Dan Slott emails: Doctor Strange cameo in the upcoming She-Hulk #8. The bonus: It's by the new She-Hulk- and classic 80's Dr. Strange- penciller, Paul Smith! [Update: More Smith art posted She-Hulk Message Board]

LEGO Dr. Strange allegedly included in band Lightning Bolt's Hypermagic Mountain CD cover [Comic Treadmill; image from CMJ #136 w/claim, #2] [Amazon] [Load Records]
Comic Treadmill has performed its sacred blogosphere duty, to alert Neilalien of any and all Dr. Strange appearances, with distinction, as have many others.

Brad Meltzer's unfortunately-phrased advice for writers hoping to include rapes in comic books: "Don't let anyone tell you no" [The Low Road]

Journey Into Amazing Weird Tales- Kirby (and Ditko) Pre-Fantastic Four Marvel Covers [BeaucoupKevin]

Five Random Opinions That I Hold About Current "Mainstream" Comics [BeaucoupKevin]
Where's the brightness, pop and joy?

The primary interest in Art has shifted from aesthetic quality to intellectual content; Art critics can't review comics; Chris Ware's good but not God [Illustration Art; #2] [via Kottke]
Update: Response: Comics aren't a series of illustrations but a series of narrative pictograms; graphics and text share narrative burden, should not be considered separately/compartmentalized; more [Kim Thompson letter to Comics Reporter]

Make the fun GODLAND a monthly purchase (while it lasts) [Not The Beastmaster]

New York Comic-Con's State of the Industry Panel [Newsarama] [Comics.212.net]

The comicsblogosphere: Phoning it in [Ringwood]

Supervillain Logic [A Trout In The Milk]

Creators think about thought balloons [The Engine]

UPDATED: Thanks for the Blogday Wishes! [2 Guys Buying Comics] [Clea's Cave] [Comics Reporter] [Comics Should Be Good] [The Comic Treadmill] [Dave's Long Box] [Fred Hembeck] [Ghost In The Machine] [Johnny Bacardi Show] [The Low Road] [Pop Culture Gadabout] [Progressive Ruin] [Tangognat]

Doctor Strange Sighting: The Sentry #6. I HAVE SEEN FEAR IN GOD'S EYES. THUS I HAVE NEVER BEEN AFRAID. UNTIL NOW. Just another bad Doc appearance in which he says something ridiculously lame and "mysterious" as a vehicle/attempt to increase drama.

Posted 1 March 02006 - Link